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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. stock — shares
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. swing — music
  5. shower — to wash
  6. game — wild animals
  7. rash — hasty
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. shower — rain
  10. rest — what's left
  11. game — a match
  12. stock — goods
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. row — a line
  16. row — to paddle
  17. rash — a series
  18. deal — to handle
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. swing — in golf
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. row — a quarrel

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