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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.

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: stock · rock · pound · degree · last · fan · spell · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. spell — a short time
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. spell — letters
  6. last — final
  7. degree — an amount
  8. pound — a weight
  9. stock — shares
  10. net — in sport
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rock — a stone
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — finally
  15. rock — music
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. net — for catching
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. degree — temperature
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. spell — magic
  24. stock — goods

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