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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bound — obliged
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bound — tied together
  6. present — a gift
  7. mate — to breed
  8. face — to confront
  9. present — there
  10. present — the time now
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. face — to point toward
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. scale — size or range
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mate — a friend
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. stock — shares
  20. scale — in music
  21. tear — to rip
  22. face — part of the head
  23. mate — a partner
  24. bound — certain

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