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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 · bass · mouse · stem · pitch · squash · game · fall

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. fall — the season
  3. game — wild animals
  4. stem — to come from
  5. fall — to drop
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. game — a match
  11. squash — the sport
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bass — the fish
  17. stock — shares
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pitch — completely
  20. fall — to drop
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. stock — goods
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. squash — to crush

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