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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: stock · rest · degree · roll · wax · sharp · stem · pitcher

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. stock — goods
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. roll — a cake
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. wax — to grow
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. stock — shares
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. degree — from a university
  16. sharp — clever
  17. roll — a list
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. stem — to come from
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — a break
  22. degree — temperature
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. rest — what's left

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