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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 · mine · sharp · tear · patient · charge · degree · firm

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. tear — to rip
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. stock — goods
  5. mine — for digging
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. tear — from crying
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. firm — steady
  10. stock — shares
  11. degree — temperature
  12. charge — a price
  13. firm — a company
  14. degree — an amount
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. firm — decided
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. tear — from crying
  22. degree — from a university
  23. charge — electricity
  24. sharp — clever

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