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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: stock · shower · staff · pound · mate · ground · lie · prune

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. prune — to trim
  3. pound — a weight
  4. ground — crushed
  5. shower — to wash
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. mate — a partner
  8. staff — employees
  9. lie — to recline
  10. mate — to breed
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. staff — employees
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. staff — a stick
  17. mate — a friend
  18. stock — goods
  19. ground — a position
  20. shower — rain
  21. prune — to trim
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. stock — shares
  24. ground — the earth

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