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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bear — the animal
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. hand — help
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. hand — in cards
  9. kick — in football
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. track — a song
  12. spring — the season
  13. spring — of water
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bear — the animal
  16. spring — a coil
  17. track — a path
  18. chip — to eat
  19. bound — tied together
  20. bound — obliged
  21. track — to keep track
  22. chip — for betting
  23. stock — goods
  24. bound — certain

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