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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: toast · pit · game · band · clip · stock · rest · stand

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. stock — shares
  4. pit — a hole
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. rest — a break
  7. rest — what's left
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. clip — for paper
  11. stock — goods
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. pit — in a race
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. rest — what's left
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. game — a match
  18. band — a music group
  19. stand — to bear
  20. band — a ring
  21. toast — bread
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. game — wild animals

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