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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. stock — shares
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. club — for dancing
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. tube — a container
  7. wound — an injury
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. club — for golf
  10. club — a group
  11. land — to come down
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. land — ground
  14. tube — the underground
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. land — a country
  18. wound — an injury
  19. row — a line
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. stock — goods
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. wave — with your hand

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