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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: straw · suit · rest · tear · date · dip · ground · stock

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — what's left
  3. suit — to fit
  4. ground — crushed
  5. stock — goods
  6. ground — the earth
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. stock — shares
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. ground — a position
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. suit — in cards
  13. tear — to rip
  14. suit — clothes
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. tear — from crying
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. dip — to sink
  20. date — the fruit
  21. tear — from crying
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. rest — a break
  24. dip — a sauce

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