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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fine · club · tube · bear · wave · file · stock · ground

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. stock — shares
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. stock — goods
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. club — for golf
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. ground — crushed
  9. bear — the animal
  10. club — a group
  11. tube — a container
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. file — a document
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. club — for dancing
  17. file — a line of people
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. ground — the earth
  20. bear — the animal
  21. tube — the underground
  22. fine — all right
  23. fine — high quality
  24. file — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com