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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. stock — shares
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. mate — to breed
  6. row — to paddle
  7. season — of the year
  8. wind — moving air
  9. capital — money
  10. current — happening now
  11. mate — a partner
  12. current — electric
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. row — a line
  18. mate — a friend
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stock — goods
  21. season — in sport
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. capital — a city
  24. current — of water

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