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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. club — for dancing
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. tear — from crying
  7. staff — employees
  8. dip — to sink
  9. stock — goods
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. tear — to rip
  12. cold — not warm
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. stock — shares
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wake — a trail
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. club — a group
  20. staff — employees
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. staff — a stick
  24. tear — from crying

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