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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. march — music
  3. capital — a city
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. face — to confront
  6. net — in sport
  7. net — for catching
  8. stock — goods
  9. rush — hurry
  10. march — the month
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. face — part of the head
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. net — after costs
  19. face — to point toward
  20. march — the month
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. capital — money
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. stock — a soup base

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