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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. spring — the season
  3. mate — to breed
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. spring — a coil
  7. craft — a skill
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. squash — the sport
  10. spring — of water
  11. mate — a partner
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of law
  14. squash — to crush
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. mate — a friend
  17. chair — a leader
  18. stock — goods
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. court — of a king
  23. craft — boats
  24. chair — to sit on

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