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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 116 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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. charge — electricity
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cold — an illness
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — in control
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — shares
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — happy
  21. content — the amount
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. mine — for digging
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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