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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. roll — a cake
  4. stock — goods
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. cold — not warm
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. bear — the animal
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. stock — shares
  11. snap — to click
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. bear — the animal
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. cold — an illness
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. roll — a list

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