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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. pound — a weight
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — shares
  6. rush — hurry
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. toast — bread
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. content — the amount
  11. content — happy
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. mark — a trace
  15. craft — a skill
  16. mark — a grade
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a leader
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. stock — a soup base

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