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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. band — a ring
  3. rock — a stone
  4. stock — shares
  5. game — wild animals
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. capital — money
  9. bark — to shout
  10. fall — to drop
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. stock — goods
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. fall — the season
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rock — music
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. fall — to drop
  20. capital — a city
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. game — a match
  23. band — a music group
  24. bark — of a tree

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