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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 116 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. field — a subject
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. lean — thin
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. drill — a practice
  7. drill — army training
  8. field — for sport
  9. stock — shares
  10. rest — what's left
  11. lean — to bend
  12. rock — music
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. rest — a break
  16. stock — goods
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bass — low music
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. rest — what's left
  22. drill — the tool
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. field — farmland

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