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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. season — of the year
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wind — moving air
  5. stock — shares
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. stock — goods
  9. wind — moving air
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bore — to drill
  12. craft — a skill
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. craft — boats
  15. bore — to tire
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. hand — help
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. wound — an injury
  23. hand — in cards
  24. season — in sport

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