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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. current — electric
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. current — happening now
  7. file — a document
  8. file — a tool
  9. bat — the animal
  10. present — the time now
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rock — music
  13. bear — the animal
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. present — there
  17. file — a line of people
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — to tease
  20. rock — a stone
  21. current — of water
  22. present — a gift
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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