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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  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. tear — from crying
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — goods
  4. degree — temperature
  5. tear — to rip
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. degree — an amount
  8. chip — for betting
  9. chip — to eat
  10. tear — from crying
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. stock — shares
  17. wound — an injury
  18. degree — from a university
  19. bat — the animal
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. chair — a professorship
  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