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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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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: race · stock · bass · bowl · shower · prune · rush · deal

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. stock — goods
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. race — humankind
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. stock — shares
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. rush — hurry
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bass — low music
  14. prune — to trim
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. shower — rain
  18. race — a contest
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. race — the arms race
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. deal — to handle

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