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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. season — in sport
  6. court — for sport
  7. spell — a short time
  8. craft — a skill
  9. fork — in a road
  10. season — of the year
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. stock — goods
  13. date — the fruit
  14. court — of law
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. court — of a king
  17. stand — to bear
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — magic
  21. craft — boats
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. stock — shares
  24. fork — to eat with

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