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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. spring — a coil
  3. fork — in a road
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. spring — of water
  6. staff — employees
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. rest — a break
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. kid — to tease
  11. spring — the season
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. stock — goods
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. staff — a stick
  16. rest — what's left
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. rest — what's left
  19. kid — child
  20. mark — a grade
  21. staff — employees
  22. stock — shares
  23. mark — a trace
  24. leaves — of a tree

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