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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 · foot · cold · rash · leaves · kid · bass · pop

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. bass — the fish
  5. stock — goods
  6. foot — a measure
  7. pop — soda
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. cold — an illness
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. kid — child
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. rash — a series
  18. pop — to visit
  19. rash — hasty
  20. pop — music
  21. bass — low music
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. stock — shares
  24. kid — to tease

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