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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. spell — magic
  3. shower — to wash
  4. shower — rain
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. wind — moving air
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. spell — a short time
  12. ball — a great time
  13. pop — soda
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stock — goods
  17. spell — letters
  18. pop — to visit
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pop — music
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. rest — what's left
  23. ball — a dance
  24. stock — shares

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