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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cold — an illness
  3. mate — a friend
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. cell — a phone
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. cell — in biology
  9. mate — to breed
  10. stand — to bear
  11. stock — goods
  12. cold — not warm
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. mate — a partner
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. stock — shares
  18. date — the fruit

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