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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chip — for betting
  6. spring — the season
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. net — after costs
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. stock — goods
  12. net — for catching
  13. chip — to eat
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. spring — of water
  17. wake — a trail
  18. spring — a coil
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wind — moving air
  21. net — in sport
  22. stock — shares
  23. mine — for digging
  24. chip — in a computer

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