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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: bulb · degree · stock · row · snap · can · pass · ground

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. can — a tin
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. degree — an amount
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. ground — the earth
  7. stock — goods
  8. ground — crushed
  9. stock — shares
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. can — to be able to
  12. row — a line
  13. row — to paddle
  14. snap — to click
  15. ground — a position
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. can — a tin
  20. bulb — for light
  21. pass — a permit
  22. degree — from a university
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. degree — temperature

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