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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. stock — goods
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — hurry
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. cue — for pool
  10. chest — of your body
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. cue — a hint
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. drill — the tool
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. drill — army training
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. chest — a box
  22. chest — of your body
  23. drill — a practice
  24. cue — a signal

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