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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. rule — a law
  3. stock — shares
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. lie — to recline
  8. stock — goods
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. wind — moving air
  11. lean — to bend
  12. rule — government
  13. kid — to tease
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. lean — thin
  18. kid — child
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. craft — a skill
  23. wind — moving air
  24. lie — an untruth

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