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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. capital — money
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. root — the cause
  7. hand — in cards
  8. stock — goods
  9. rock — music
  10. bat — the animal
  11. stock — shares
  12. rock — a stone
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. root — of a word
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. capital — a city
  18. root — of a plant
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. hand — help
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. lash — an eyelash

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