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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. stock — shares
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. stock — goods
  8. court — of law
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. fall — to drop
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — there
  14. fall — to drop
  15. present — a gift
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — for sport
  18. last — to go on
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. last — final
  21. last — finally
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. chair — a leader
  24. fall — the season

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