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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  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. march — the month
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. spring — the season
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. march — the month
  6. squash — the sport
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. stock — goods
  10. spring — a coil
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. fine — high quality
  13. march — music
  14. fine — all right
  15. squash — to crush
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. spring — of water
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. stock — shares
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. patient — a sick person
  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