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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 124 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: squash · pitcher · rock · kick · tear · bark · stock · hand

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. squash — to crush
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. hand — in cards
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. rock — a stone
  8. stock — goods
  9. kick — in football
  10. bark — to shout
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. tear — from crying
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. squash — the sport
  19. hand — help
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. rock — music
  23. stock — shares
  24. bark — of a tree

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