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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. spring — of water
  3. hand — in cards
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. stand — to bear
  10. stock — goods
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. hand — help
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. spring — a coil
  16. rock — a stone
  17. kid — to tease
  18. snap — to click
  19. rock — music
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. kid — child
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. spring — the season

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