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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 120 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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. firm — decided
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. club — for dancing
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. club — a group
  11. kid — child
  12. firm — a company
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. shower — to wash
  15. kid — to tease
  16. club — for golf
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — a division
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. shower — rain
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. stock — shares
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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