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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. spring — of water
  3. row — to paddle
  4. row — a line
  5. stock — goods
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. craft — boats
  8. spring — a coil
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. swing — in golf
  11. perch — the fish
  12. saw — the tool
  13. craft — a skill
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. spring — the season
  17. swing — music
  18. rule — government
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. saw — the tool
  21. stock — shares
  22. rule — a law
  23. swing — to play on
  24. perch — for a bird

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