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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to 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. stock — shares
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. key — the most important part
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. cold — an illness
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. rush — hurry
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. cold — not warm
  12. face — to confront
  13. face — to point toward
  14. stock — goods
  15. face — part of the head
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. chair — a leader
  18. key — in music
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. key — for a lock
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. patient — a sick person
  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