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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. staff — employees
  8. stock — shares
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. chair — a leader
  11. staff — a stick
  12. band — a music group
  13. spring — of water
  14. staff — employees
  15. spring — the season
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. band — a ring
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. spring — a coil
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. chair — to sit on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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