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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. snap — to click
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. rest — a break
  6. rash — a series
  7. stock — shares
  8. mug — a cup
  9. capital — a city
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. mug — to rob
  12. cold — not warm
  13. stock — goods
  14. capital — money
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. rash — hasty
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. mug — a face
  19. plane — a tool
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rest — what's left
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rest — what's left
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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