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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. stock — goods
  3. craft — boats
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. wake — a trail
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tear — from crying
  9. net — in sport
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. stock — shares
  14. net — after costs
  15. chip — for betting
  16. chip — to eat
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. tear — from crying
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. net — for catching
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. craft — a skill
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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