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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. rest — a break
  3. cold — not warm
  4. object — to protest
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. stock — shares
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rest — what's left
  9. tube — a container
  10. object — an aim
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. stock — goods
  13. tube — the underground
  14. present — the time now
  15. present — there
  16. swing — in golf
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. object — a thing
  19. swing — music
  20. lie — to recline
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. present — a gift
  23. rest — what's left
  24. tube — in a tire

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