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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. wind — moving air
  4. swing — to play on
  5. stock — goods
  6. mark — a trace
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. spell — magic
  9. wind — moving air
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lie — to recline
  12. spell — letters
  13. swing — music
  14. spell — a short time
  15. stock — shares
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. tear — to rip
  20. mark — a grade
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. swing — in golf

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