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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: stick · bowl · stock · swing · cell · race · ball · rock

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. ball — a great time
  6. swing — to play on
  7. rock — a stone
  8. race — humankind
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. stock — goods
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — a contest
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cell — a phone
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. stock — shares
  21. cell — in biology
  22. ball — a dance
  23. swing — in golf
  24. swing — music

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