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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. swing — to play on
  3. bear — the animal
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. swing — in golf
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. last — final
  10. bear — the animal
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. scale — in music
  14. swing — music
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. net — in sport
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. net — after costs
  21. scale — size or range
  22. stock — shares
  23. stock — goods
  24. straw — a straw man

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