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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 116 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. cold — an illness
  3. lean — to bend
  4. stock — goods
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lean — thin
  8. rest — a break
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. stock — shares
  12. wind — moving air
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. deal — to handle
  15. rest — what's left
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. perch — the fish
  20. rest — what's left
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — high quality
  23. cold — not warm
  24. deal — a big deal

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