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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — an illness
  7. stock — shares
  8. firm — decided
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — a match
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. firm — a company
  14. tear — to rip
  15. stock — goods
  16. tear — from crying
  17. spell — a short time
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. spell — letters
  20. game — wild animals
  21. spell — magic
  22. firm — steady
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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