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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. kick — in football
  3. stock — shares
  4. lean — thin
  5. mate — to breed
  6. net — after costs
  7. lean — to bend
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. net — for catching
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. mate — a friend
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. rush — hurry
  16. sharp — clever
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. net — in sport
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stock — goods

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