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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: stock · shower · hide · tear · rash · scale · stem · mine

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. shower — to wash
  8. mine — for digging
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — a series
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. stock — shares
  16. scale — in music
  17. rash — hasty
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. stem — to come from
  20. stock — goods
  21. scale — size or range
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. tear — to rip
  24. shower — rain

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