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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. stock — goods
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. spring — a coil
  5. craft — a skill
  6. craft — boats
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. saw — the tool
  9. spring — the season
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pop — music
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. saw — the tool
  15. current — electric
  16. stock — shares
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. spring — of water
  19. pop — to visit
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. current — happening now
  24. current — of water

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