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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 120 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: racket · stock · staff · straw · ball · march · rule · capital

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. stock — shares
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. capital — a city
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. rule — government
  9. capital — money
  10. rule — a law
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — employees
  16. ball — a great time
  17. staff — a stick
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. march — music
  24. rule — to rule out

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