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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. stock — shares
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. march — music
  5. rock — music
  6. key — the most important part
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. wind — moving air
  9. stock — goods
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. kid — to tease
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. wind — moving air
  14. march — the month
  15. roll — a cake
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — child
  18. roll — a list
  19. rock — a stone
  20. key — for a lock
  21. dip — to sink
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. key — in music
  24. march — the month

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