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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.

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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: tube · kick · stock · last · row · prune · scale · squash

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — in football
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. last — finally
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. last — to go on
  10. tube — the underground
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. row — to paddle
  13. squash — to crush
  14. last — final
  15. prune — to trim
  16. stock — goods
  17. squash — the sport
  18. row — a line
  19. tube — a container
  20. scale — in music
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. scale — size or range
  24. prune — to trim

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