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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. suit — to fit
  3. court — for sport
  4. court — of law
  5. land — a country
  6. stock — shares
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. court — of a king
  9. suit — in cards
  10. stock — goods
  11. kid — to tease
  12. suit — clothes
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. kid — child
  15. land — ground
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. land — to come down
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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