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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. face — to point toward
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. can — a tin
  10. club — for golf
  11. stock — goods
  12. cold — an illness
  13. club — a group
  14. face — to confront
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. rash — a series
  18. can — to be able to
  19. face — part of the head
  20. bark — to shout
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. can — a tin
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. club — for dancing

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