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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. race — a contest
  3. land — ground
  4. spell — magic
  5. swing — music
  6. stock — shares
  7. spell — letters
  8. land — a country
  9. rest — what's left
  10. firm — a company
  11. firm — steady
  12. swing — to play on
  13. race — humankind
  14. stock — goods
  15. land — to come down
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rest — what's left
  18. spell — a short time
  19. rest — a break
  20. swing — in golf
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. firm — decided
  23. race — the arms race
  24. fan — to cool the air

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