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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 116 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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — shares
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. shower — rain
  5. bore — to tire
  6. land — a country
  7. shower — to wash
  8. bore — to drill
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. march — the month
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. march — the month
  18. march — music

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