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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 124 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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. row — to paddle
  3. staff — employees
  4. staff — employees
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. spring — of water
  7. tear — from crying
  8. spring — the season
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. wound — an injury
  11. spring — a coil
  12. toast — bread
  13. row — a line
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. stock — goods
  17. tear — from crying
  18. staff — a stick
  19. tear — to rip
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. stock — shares
  23. wound — an injury
  24. lash — to lash out

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