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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 120 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 sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pop — soda
  3. pop — music
  4. stock — shares
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. stock — goods
  8. chest — a box
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. pop — to visit
  11. wind — moving air
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. fork — in a road
  18. chest — of your body

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