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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. craft — a skill
  4. court — of law
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. swing — in golf
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. swing — to play on
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. stock — shares
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. craft — boats
  15. court — for sport
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. court — of a king
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. rash — a series
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. rash — hasty
  24. swing — music

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