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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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468
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: key · wind · stock · lash · bass · tear · bat · can

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. key — in music
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. key — the most important part
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. wind — moving air
  8. can — to be able to
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — goods
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — low music
  15. can — a tin
  16. key — for a lock
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bat — the animal
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — from crying

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