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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 120 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: snap · race · stock · stick · can · hand · prune · court

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. stock — goods
  3. can — a tin
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. stock — shares
  6. prune — to trim
  7. race — humankind
  8. can — to be able to
  9. court — of law
  10. race — the arms race
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. hand — in cards
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. can — a tin
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. snap — to click
  19. court — of a king
  20. prune — to trim
  21. hand — help
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. race — a contest

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