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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. bulb — for light
  3. stock — goods
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. mark — a trace
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. hand — help
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. court — of a king
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bulb — for light
  14. staff — a stick
  15. staff — employees
  16. hand — in cards
  17. staff — employees
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. mark — a grade
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. stock — shares
  24. cold — an illness

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