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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. content — the amount
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. bass — low music
  7. cap — a hat
  8. stock — shares
  9. kid — to tease
  10. vault — a safe
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. track — a path
  13. track — a song
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. content — happy
  16. cap — a lid
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. track — to keep track
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. cap — of ice
  23. bass — the fish
  24. content — videos and posts

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