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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: cell · stock · stick · straw · fall · bank · rule · lie

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. cell — in biology
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. fall — the season
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — to drop
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. lie — to recline
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. bank — of a river
  13. rule — government
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. rule — a law
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. stock — goods
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. cell — a phone
  21. stock — shares
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bank — for money
  24. lie — an untruth

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