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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bear — the animal
  5. wake — a trail
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. court — for sport
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. bear — the animal
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — for digging
  14. court — of a king
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. stock — goods
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stock — shares
  23. court — of law
  24. mine — an explosive

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