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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. stock — shares
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. rash — hasty
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. mine — for digging
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. rash — a series
  15. stock — goods
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bat — the animal
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. nail — for a hammer

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