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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. key — in music
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. cap — a lid
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. key — the most important part
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. band — a ring
  14. band — a music group
  15. mug — a cup
  16. mug — a face
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. mug — to rob
  20. cap — of ice
  21. tear — to rip
  22. cap — a hat
  23. stock — shares
  24. key — for a lock

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