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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. bear — the animal
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. bound — tied together
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. cold — an illness
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. cold — not warm
  11. rash — hasty
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. squash — the sport
  15. bound — obliged
  16. stock — shares
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. bound — certain
  20. bear — the animal
  21. rash — a series
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. stock — goods

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