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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 116 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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. kid — child
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. stock — shares
  5. rock — music
  6. staff — employees
  7. staff — employees
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. stock — goods
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. spell — a short time
  13. last — finally
  14. rock — a stone
  15. deal — to handle
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — to tease
  18. perch — the fish
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. last — to go on
  21. staff — a stick
  22. last — final
  23. spell — magic
  24. spell — letters

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