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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. pop — music
  4. kid — to tease
  5. pop — soda
  6. pop — to visit
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — a short time
  9. stock — shares
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. spell — magic
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bear — the animal
  16. wind — moving air
  17. kid — child
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. bear — the animal
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. straw — a straw man

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