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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. club — for golf
  3. fork — in a road
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. rest — a break
  6. club — for dancing
  7. rest — what's left
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — a series
  16. land — to come down
  17. club — a group
  18. wind — moving air
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. rest — what's left
  21. land — ground
  22. stock — goods
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. land — a country

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