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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 · roll · rule · kick · ground · mate · stock · chest

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. rule — a law
  4. ground — a position
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. stock — shares
  7. mate — a friend
  8. roll — a list
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bulb — for light
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. roll — a cake
  14. mate — a partner
  15. stock — goods
  16. rule — government
  17. chest — a box
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — of your body
  21. mate — to breed
  22. ground — the earth
  23. bulb — for light
  24. kick — in football

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