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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. hand — in cards
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. shower — rain
  8. game — a match
  9. charge — electricity
  10. stock — goods
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. stock — shares
  13. charge — in control
  14. shower — to wash
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. hand — help
  18. kick — in football
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. charge — a price
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. hand — part of the body

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