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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: stock · scale · wind · current · mate · race · coach · tube

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. tube — a container
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. current — of water
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. race — humankind
  9. race — the arms race
  10. stock — shares
  11. scale — size or range
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. tube — the underground
  15. scale — in music
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mate — a friend
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. race — a contest
  21. current — electric
  22. current — happening now
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — goods

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