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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — in cards
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. firm — decided
  10. chair — a leader
  11. cold — an illness
  12. stock — shares
  13. firm — steady
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bear — the animal
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. firm — a company
  18. chest — a box
  19. hand — help
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bear — the animal
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. cold — not warm
  24. hide — animal skin

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