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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. swing — music
  4. chair — a leader
  5. stock — goods
  6. face — part of the head
  7. stock — shares
  8. race — the arms race
  9. face — to confront
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. swing — to play on
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. race — humankind
  20. wake — a trail
  21. race — a contest
  22. swing — in golf
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. face — to point toward

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