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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. court — of a king
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. chip — for betting
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. court — for sport
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. kid — to tease
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. court — of law
  17. bark — to shout
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. branch — a division
  20. stock — shares
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. chip — to eat
  23. kid — child
  24. branch — of a tree

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