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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 116 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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. stock — shares
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. stock — goods
  7. pass — a permit
  8. bear — the animal
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. wound — an injury
  15. charge — in control
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. charge — a price
  20. charge — electricity
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. kid — child
  23. bear — the animal
  24. nail — on a finger

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