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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. stock — shares
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. club — a group
  5. bulb — for light
  6. hand — in cards
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. rash — hasty
  9. present — there
  10. wake — a trail
  11. present — the time now
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. bulb — for light
  14. rash — a series
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. club — for dancing
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. stock — goods
  20. present — a gift
  21. club — for golf
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. row — a line
  24. bulb — of a plant

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