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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: racket · stick · cold · mug · stock · nail · prune · capital

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. mug — a face
  4. stock — shares
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. mug — to rob
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. prune — to trim
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. cold — not warm
  18. capital — money
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. mug — a cup
  21. capital — a city
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. stock — goods
  24. racket — for tennis

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