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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. kick — in football
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. snap — to click
  5. court — of a king
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. cue — a signal
  8. file — a tool
  9. cue — for pool
  10. court — for sport
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a line of people
  15. court — of law
  16. bear — the animal
  17. chair — a leader
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cue — a hint
  23. stock — shares
  24. stock — a soup base

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