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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. kid — child
  3. game — wild animals
  4. kid — to tease
  5. craft — boats
  6. press — newspapers
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bound — obliged
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. press — to push
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. mate — a friend
  13. bound — tied together
  14. stock — goods
  15. mate — a partner
  16. game — a match
  17. stock — shares
  18. craft — a skill
  19. mate — to breed
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. press — a publisher
  22. bound — certain
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. cold — an illness

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