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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: pit · pop · coach · spring · stock · plane · firm · cold

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. cold — an illness
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. stock — shares
  5. pop — to visit
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. firm — a company
  9. firm — decided
  10. spring — the season
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. plane — a tool
  14. firm — steady
  15. pit — in a race
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pit — a hole
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cold — not warm
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. spring — of water
  23. pop — music
  24. stock — goods

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