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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. wind — moving air
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. key — in music
  5. stock — goods
  6. face — to confront
  7. wind — moving air
  8. key — the most important part
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. row — a line
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. stock — shares
  14. rule — government
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. rule — a law
  17. key — for a lock
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. row — to paddle
  21. rash — hasty
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — part of the head
  24. rule — to rule out

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