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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. game — a match
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. shower — rain
  5. stock — goods
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. stock — shares
  14. fall — the season
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. capital — a city
  18. shower — to wash
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — to drop
  21. game — wild animals
  22. capital — money
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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