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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. firm — decided
  4. spring — the season
  5. bound — obliged
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. spring — a coil
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bass — low music
  10. bass — the fish
  11. chest — a box
  12. firm — steady
  13. chest — of your body
  14. spring — of water
  15. bound — tied together
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — in football
  18. bound — certain
  19. stock — shares
  20. track — to keep track
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. track — a song
  23. firm — a company
  24. track — a path

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