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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. spell — letters
  3. staff — employees
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. tube — a container
  6. tube — the underground
  7. face — to confront
  8. staff — a stick
  9. plane — a tool
  10. stock — shares
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — magic
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. face — to point toward
  17. stock — goods
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. staff — employees
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. face — part of the head

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