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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 120 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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. chest — of your body
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. pop — soda
  7. scale — in music
  8. scale — size or range
  9. stock — shares
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chest — a box
  16. rule — government
  17. rule — a law
  18. pop — music
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pop — to visit
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. tear — to rip

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