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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. cold — an illness
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. charge — in control
  6. charge — electricity
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — for digging
  9. stock — shares
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. charge — a price
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. swing — music
  18. last — finally
  19. swing — in golf
  20. cold — not warm
  21. swing — to play on
  22. last — final
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. stock — goods

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