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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: wound · shower · date · stock · fork · mate · club · wake

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. stock — shares
  3. date — the fruit
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. mate — to breed
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. club — a group
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — rain
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. wake — a trail
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. club — for golf
  17. club — for dancing
  18. stock — goods
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. mate — a friend
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. mate — a partner
  24. date — on the calendar

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