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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: fine · row · hide · scale · degree · cold · stock · cue

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. stock — shares
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. cold — not warm
  5. degree — from a university
  6. cue — a hint
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. row — to paddle
  9. cold — an illness
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. cue — for pool
  12. fine — all right
  13. degree — temperature
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. cue — a signal
  18. scale — in music
  19. degree — an amount
  20. stock — goods
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. scale — size or range
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. fine — high quality

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