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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: scale · hand · ruler · tear · stock · sharp · shower · saw

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. scale — size or range
  3. shower — to wash
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. hand — in cards
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. stock — goods
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. saw — the tool
  11. shower — rain
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. stock — shares
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. scale — in music
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. hand — help
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. sharp — clever
  24. scale — for weighing

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