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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. land — to come down
  3. bat — the animal
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. craft — boats
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. stock — goods
  8. bear — the animal
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. object — to protest
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. file — a document
  14. stock — shares
  15. land — a country
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. file — a tool
  18. object — an aim
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. land — ground
  21. file — a line of people
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. bear — the animal
  24. craft — a skill

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