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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 120 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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. pop — soda
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. field — for sport
  6. stock — goods
  7. tear — to rip
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. tear — from crying
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. pop — music
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. pop — to visit
  15. mark — a grade
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. tear — from crying
  18. mark — a trace
  19. stock — shares
  20. field — farmland
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. foot — a measure
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. field — a subject

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