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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. bulb — for light
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. stock — goods
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. file — a tool
  8. file — a document
  9. game — a match
  10. rush — hurry
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. drill — army training
  13. game — wild animals
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. drill — the tool
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. bulb — for light
  22. file — a line of people
  23. drill — a practice
  24. stock — shares

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