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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: last · cabinet · capital · temple · snap · stock · lean · wound

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to bend
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. capital — a city
  7. stock — goods
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. snap — to click
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. last — finally
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. capital — money
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. wound — an injury
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. last — final
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. last — to go on
  22. wound — an injury
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. temple — side of the head

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