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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. cold — not warm
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. rest — a break
  6. foot — a measure
  7. wound — an injury
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. bank — of a river
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. bank — for money
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — goods
  18. wound — an injury
  19. deal — to handle
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. bank — for money

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