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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. tube — the underground
  3. stock — shares
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. stock — goods
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. cue — a signal
  9. lie — to recline
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. cue — for pool
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. cold — not warm
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. cold — an illness
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. tube — a container

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