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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. scale — size or range
  3. present — there
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. present — a gift
  6. rest — what's left
  7. present — the time now
  8. row — to paddle
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. scale — in music
  11. stock — goods
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. rash — a series
  14. row — a line
  15. stock — shares
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rest — what's left
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. rash — hasty

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