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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. band — a music group
  3. craft — boats
  4. sharp — clever
  5. charge — electricity
  6. lean — thin
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. pit — a hole
  9. row — a line
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. charge — a price
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. row — to paddle
  15. stock — shares
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. pit — in a race
  18. lean — to bend
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. craft — a skill
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. band — a ring
  24. charge — in control

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