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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 116 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 sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. stock — goods
  3. cap — a hat
  4. stock — shares
  5. cap — a lid
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rash — a series
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. face — part of the head
  10. cold — not warm
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. cap — of ice
  14. face — to point toward
  15. present — the time now
  16. present — a gift
  17. pop — soda
  18. pop — music
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. present — there
  21. pop — to visit
  22. face — to confront
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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