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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — hasty
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. stock — shares
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — an illness
  11. ground — crushed
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. saw — the tool
  16. season — of the year
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ground — a position
  19. saw — the tool
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. season — in sport
  22. rash — a series
  23. kick — in football
  24. season — to add flavour

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