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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. object — a thing
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. rash — a series
  6. spell — magic
  7. face — to confront
  8. spell — a short time
  9. face — to point toward
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. face — part of the head
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. object — to protest
  14. rash — hasty
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. spell — letters
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. object — an aim
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. deal — to handle
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. dip — to sink
  23. stock — goods
  24. straw — dry grass

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