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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 120 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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. stock — goods
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. last — to go on
  7. land — ground
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. last — final
  10. perch — the fish
  11. squash — the sport
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. land — a country
  17. last — finally
  18. row — a line
  19. squash — to crush
  20. row — to paddle
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. land — to come down

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