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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. kid — to tease
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wake — a trail
  6. club — for dancing
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. spell — magic
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. club — for golf
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. stock — shares
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. spell — a short time
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. fork — in a road
  20. club — a group
  21. kid — child
  22. stock — goods
  23. spell — letters
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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