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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  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. row — a quarrel
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pop — to visit
  4. tear — from crying
  5. spell — letters
  6. present — there
  7. stock — shares
  8. present — a gift
  9. pop — soda
  10. present — the time now
  11. tear — to rip
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. stock — goods
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. pop — music
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spell — magic
  18. row — a line
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — of law
  21. wake — a trail
  22. court — for sport
  23. row — to paddle
  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