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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. lie — to recline
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bulb — for light
  5. deal — to handle
  6. bulb — for light
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. stock — goods
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. degree — temperature
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — employees
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. degree — an amount
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. staff — a stick
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. wake — a trail
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bowl — a football final

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