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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: mouse · saw · tear · spell · stem · stock · capital · wake

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. spell — magic
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. saw — the tool
  5. capital — money
  6. tear — from crying
  7. stock — shares
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. saw — the tool
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stock — goods
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. spell — a short time
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. stem — to come from
  21. spell — letters
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wake — a trail
  24. mouse — the animal

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