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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. stock — shares
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. rash — a series
  8. bank — of a river
  9. bank — for money
  10. rule — government
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bank — for money
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. content — the amount
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. rule — a law
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. content — happy
  24. rash — hasty

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