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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — shares
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. perch — the fish
  5. last — to go on
  6. capital — money
  7. last — final
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. squash — the sport
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. rest — what's left
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. last — finally
  16. squash — to crush
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. rest — what's left
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. rest — a break
  24. safe — a strongbox

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