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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. date — the fruit
  6. stock — goods
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. stock — shares
  9. snap — to click
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. club — for golf
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. club — for dancing
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. club — a group
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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