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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — a tin
  5. track — to keep track
  6. cold — an illness
  7. can — to be able to
  8. track — a song
  9. swing — to play on
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. stock — shares
  12. swing — music
  13. cold — not warm
  14. track — a path
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. stock — goods
  17. hand — in cards
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. chair — a leader
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. swing — in golf
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. hand — help
  24. pound — a weight

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