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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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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: chest · wake · charge · fall · foot · present · deal · stock

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. present — a gift
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. fall — to drop
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. stock — goods
  11. foot — a measure
  12. deal — to handle
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. present — the time now
  16. fall — the season
  17. wake — a trail
  18. charge — a price
  19. charge — in control
  20. chest — of your body
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. charge — electricity
  23. present — there
  24. deal — an agreement

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