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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. stock — shares
  3. staff — employees
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. object — to protest
  6. stock — goods
  7. staff — a stick
  8. chest — of your body
  9. prune — to trim
  10. scale — size or range
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. staff — employees
  13. plane — a tool
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. chest — of your body
  19. object — a thing
  20. chest — a box
  21. scale — in music
  22. prune — to trim
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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