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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. roll — a list
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rest — what's left
  5. stock — shares
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — to rip
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. mug — to rob
  14. rest — a break
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. roll — a cake
  17. rest — what's left
  18. mug — a face
  19. cold — not warm
  20. mug — a cup
  21. tear — from crying
  22. stock — goods
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. stock — a soup base

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