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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. pop — soda
  3. craft — a skill
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. prune — to trim
  6. court — of law
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. stock — shares
  9. pop — to visit
  10. chair — a leader
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. craft — boats
  14. wind — moving air
  15. court — for sport
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. stock — goods
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. pop — music
  20. prune — to trim
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. wind — moving air
  23. court — of a king
  24. craft — a handicraft

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