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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 116 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: rock · land · scale · bark · pitcher · content · firm · stock

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. content — the amount
  4. land — ground
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. stock — goods
  7. bark — to shout
  8. rock — music
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. rock — a stone
  13. firm — steady
  14. land — to come down
  15. content — happy
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. firm — decided
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. firm — a company
  20. scale — in music
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. land — a country
  24. stock — a soup base

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