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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. spring — of water
  3. stock — shares
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. track — to keep track
  9. fall — the season
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. track — a song
  12. fall — to drop
  13. track — a path
  14. stock — goods
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. fall — to drop
  18. spring — the season
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. spring — a coil
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. straw — a straw man

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