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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 116 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 · row · hand · season · straw · nail · wake · ball

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — a trail
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. stock — shares
  10. ball — a dance
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. stock — goods
  14. row — a line
  15. season — of the year
  16. hand — help
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. row — to paddle
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. ball — a great time
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. season — in sport

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