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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. ball — a great time
  3. stock — shares
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. ball — a dance
  6. bear — the animal
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. rock — a stone
  9. hand — help
  10. wind — moving air
  11. chair — a leader
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hand — in cards
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. stock — goods
  19. rock — music
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. bear — the animal
  24. wind — moving air

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