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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: shower · kid · bowl · key · calf · march · cue · stock

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. stock — goods
  7. cue — for pool
  8. key — in music
  9. cue — a signal
  10. march — the month
  11. shower — rain
  12. shower — to wash
  13. key — the most important part
  14. cue — a hint
  15. kid — child
  16. march — music
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. key — for a lock
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. march — the month
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. stock — shares
  24. calf — a young animal

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