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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 120 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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. rest — a break
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chip — for betting
  13. cell — a phone
  14. rest — what's left
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. stock — goods
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — to eat
  24. lash — an eyelash

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