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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. chair — a leader
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. last — finally
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. sharp — clever
  7. track — a path
  8. stock — shares
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. last — to go on
  15. track — to keep track
  16. stock — goods
  17. last — final
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. mug — to rob
  20. track — a song
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. mug — a cup
  24. date — on the calendar

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