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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. court — of a king
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. march — music
  6. stock — goods
  7. court — for sport
  8. kick — in football
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. march — the month
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. stock — shares
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. wind — moving air
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. court — of law

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