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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. spring — a coil
  4. mine — for digging
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. shower — to wash
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. firm — a company
  11. firm — decided
  12. pop — soda
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. pop — to visit
  17. stock — shares
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. spring — of water
  20. pop — music
  21. spring — the season
  22. shower — rain
  23. firm — steady
  24. stock — goods

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