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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. race — the arms race
  4. chest — of your body
  5. race — humankind
  6. stock — goods
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. stock — shares
  11. race — a contest
  12. shower — to wash
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. chest — of your body
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — help
  18. hand — in cards
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. chest — a box
  24. shower — rain

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