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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. mug — to rob
  3. stock — goods
  4. mug — a face
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. wind — moving air
  9. vault — a safe
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. rash — hasty
  13. mug — a cup
  14. bat — the animal
  15. season — of the year
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. roll — a cake
  20. season — in sport
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. stock — shares
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — on the skin

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