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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. file — a document
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. file — a tool
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — rain
  12. shower — to wash
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. stock — goods
  17. cap — a lid
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. bulb — for light
  20. file — a line of people
  21. cap — a hat
  22. cap — of ice
  23. chair — a leader
  24. bulb — for light

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