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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: toast · fall · bat · cabinet · track · wave · stock · degree

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. degree — temperature
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. track — a song
  7. stock — shares
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bat — the animal
  14. toast — bread
  15. track — a path
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. degree — from a university
  20. stock — goods
  21. track — to keep track
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. fall — the season

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