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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. content — happy
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. content — the amount
  7. chest — a box
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. stock — goods
  10. chest — of your body
  11. rash — a series
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. track — a path
  17. stock — shares
  18. pass — a permit
  19. chest — of your body
  20. track — a song
  21. rash — hasty
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. track — to keep track

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