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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: ground · tube · pass · saw · capital · stock · fall · chest

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. chest — a box
  3. saw — the tool
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. stock — shares
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. chest — of your body
  8. ground — a position
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. fall — the season
  12. fall — to drop
  13. ground — the earth
  14. stock — goods
  15. fall — to drop
  16. ground — crushed
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. saw — the tool
  19. chest — of your body
  20. tube — the underground
  21. capital — a city
  22. pass — a permit
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. capital — money

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