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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. degree — from a university
  5. rest — what's left
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. stand — to bear
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bear — the animal
  10. stock — shares
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. degree — an amount
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. stock — goods
  17. cold — not warm
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. cold — an illness
  20. chip — to eat
  21. chip — for betting
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. rest — a break
  24. rest — what's left

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