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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. bore — to tire
  4. mark — a trace
  5. face — to confront
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bore — to drill
  8. cold — an illness
  9. face — to point toward
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. toast — bread
  14. shower — to wash
  15. mark — a grade
  16. shower — rain
  17. foot — a measure
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. face — part of the head
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. stock — goods
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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