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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. rest — a break
  3. ground — crushed
  4. stock — shares
  5. ground — the earth
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. mate — a friend
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. ground — a position
  12. wake — a trail
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. rest — what's left
  15. current — of water
  16. current — electric
  17. chest — a box
  18. mate — to breed
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. current — happening now
  22. chest — of your body
  23. mate — a partner
  24. rest — what's left

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