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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. shower — rain
  3. stock — goods
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. pop — to visit
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. band — a ring
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. pop — soda
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stock — shares
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. foot — a measure
  19. pop — music
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. shower — to wash
  24. band — a music group

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