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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 116 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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. vault — a safe
  3. pop — music
  4. can — a tin
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. pop — to visit
  9. pop — soda
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. fall — to drop
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — to be able to
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. dip — to sink
  19. fall — the season
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. fall — to drop
  22. stock — goods
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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