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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — shares
  3. bass — the fish
  4. swing — to play on
  5. cell — a phone
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. cell — in biology
  8. march — music
  9. court — of a king
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. swing — music
  12. march — the month
  13. swing — in golf
  14. bulb — for light
  15. chair — a leader
  16. court — for sport
  17. bass — low music
  18. court — of law
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. bulb — for light
  21. march — the month
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. chair — to sit on

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