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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — the arms race
  4. fall — to drop
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. race — humankind
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. band — a music group
  10. fall — the season
  11. bound — tied together
  12. rule — a law
  13. fall — to drop
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. stock — shares
  16. chair — a leader
  17. rule — government
  18. bound — certain
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pound — a weight
  22. bound — obliged
  23. band — a ring
  24. stock — a soup base

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