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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. stock — shares
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. current — electric
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. stock — goods
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. net — after costs
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. current — happening now
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. march — the month
  17. current — of water
  18. march — music
  19. net — for catching
  20. march — the month
  21. chair — a leader
  22. rush — hurry
  23. net — in sport
  24. date — on the calendar

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