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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. stock — goods
  3. cold — not warm
  4. kick — in football
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. race — a contest
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. bank — of a river
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. race — humankind
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bank — for money
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. race — the arms race
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. bank — for money
  22. stock — shares
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. cold — the Cold War

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