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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. wake — a trail
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. wound — an injury
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. wound — an injury
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bass — low music
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. dip — to sink
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. stock — goods
  21. bat — the animal
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bat — for baseball

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