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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. stock — goods
  3. shower — to wash
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. rash — hasty
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. shower — rain
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bound — tied together
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bound — obliged
  17. stock — shares
  18. track — a path
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. craft — boats
  21. bound — certain
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. rash — a series
  24. track — to keep track

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