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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. race — a contest
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. mug — a face
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. wound — an injury
  9. club — for dancing
  10. season — in sport
  11. mug — a cup
  12. club — for golf
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. club — a group
  15. rest — what's left
  16. mug — to rob
  17. rest — a break
  18. stock — shares
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — humankind
  21. season — of the year
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. wound — an injury
  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