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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. rush — hurry
  5. wind — moving air
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. stock — goods
  13. wind — moving air
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. stock — shares
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. mark — a grade
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. mark — a trace
  24. rush — a thrill

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