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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. stock — shares
  3. fall — the season
  4. ball — a dance
  5. stock — goods
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — hasty
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. rash — a series
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. kid — to tease
  14. fall — to drop
  15. chip — for betting
  16. fall — to drop
  17. chip — to eat
  18. ball — a great time

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