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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. bore — to tire
  4. club — for golf
  5. hand — help
  6. stock — goods
  7. spell — a short time
  8. hand — in cards
  9. spell — letters
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. club — a group
  14. bore — to drill
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. club — for dancing
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. stock — shares
  23. spell — magic
  24. march — the month

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