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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: hand · band · shower · scale · wave · stock · bulb · patient

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. stock — shares
  3. scale — in music
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. band — a ring
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. shower — rain
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. band — a music group
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hand — help
  20. shower — to wash
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — goods

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