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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 the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. pop — music
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. hand — help
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. cap — a hat
  8. rash — a series
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cap — of ice
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. pop — to visit
  13. stock — goods
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. tear — from crying
  16. rash — hasty
  17. stock — shares
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pop — soda
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. hand — in cards
  24. cap — a lid

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