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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: stick · snap · pitcher · stock · chair · roll · mouse · cold

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. stock — goods
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. chair — a leader
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. roll — a cake
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. snap — to click
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. roll — a list

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