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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 116 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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. spell — a short time
  3. rest — what's left
  4. spell — magic
  5. rest — a break
  6. stock — goods
  7. track — to keep track
  8. snap — to click
  9. track — a path
  10. rock — music
  11. race — the arms race
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spell — letters
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. rest — what's left
  18. stock — shares
  19. spring — of water
  20. spring — the season
  21. rock — a stone
  22. race — humankind
  23. track — a song
  24. race — a contest

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