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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. ground — a position
  3. rash — hasty
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rash — a series
  6. stock — shares
  7. stock — goods
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. tear — from crying
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. ground — crushed
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. tear — to rip
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. file — a document
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. ground — the earth
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. file — a tool
  22. tube — a container
  23. file — a line of people
  24. tube — the underground

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