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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. hand — in cards
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. wake — a trail
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. spring — a coil
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. stand — to bear
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. lie — to recline
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. hand — help
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. spring — of water
  23. spring — the season
  24. stock — goods

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