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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 116 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wake — a trail
  3. craft — boats
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. scale — size or range
  7. land — to come down
  8. scale — in music
  9. land — ground
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — goods
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. land — a country
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. tear — from crying
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. craft — a skill
  20. snap — to click
  21. tear — to rip
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. wake — before a funeral

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