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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 120 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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. net — after costs
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. swing — music
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. spell — magic
  9. swing — to play on
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. cell — in biology
  12. spell — a short time
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — for catching
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. swing — in golf
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. stock — goods
  21. cell — a phone
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. spell — letters
  24. leaves — to go away

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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