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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: rule · row · mug · bulb · stock · last · wind · wound

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. rule — government
  4. row — a line
  5. last — final
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bulb — for light
  8. rule — a law
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. wind — moving air
  11. last — finally
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. last — to go on
  14. bulb — for light
  15. wound — an injury
  16. mug — to rob
  17. stock — goods
  18. stock — shares
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. mug — a face
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. row — to paddle
  23. wound — an injury
  24. mug — a cup

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