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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 120 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — shares
  6. bulb — for light
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. hand — help
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. prune — to trim
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. mate — a friend
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hand — in cards
  16. mate — to breed
  17. can — a tin
  18. mine — for digging
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bulb — for light
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. can — to be able to
  24. can — a tin

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