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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: temple · pitcher · stock · file · mug · stem · wax · key

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. key — for a lock
  3. key — the most important part
  4. file — a document
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. key — in music
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — to grow
  13. file — a line of people
  14. stock — goods
  15. file — a tool
  16. stock — shares
  17. stem — to come from
  18. mug — a face
  19. mug — to rob
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. mug — a cup
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. wax — for sculpting

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