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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. stock — shares
  4. chest — a box
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. mug — to rob
  7. cold — an illness
  8. land — to come down
  9. chest — of your body
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. mug — a face
  12. cold — not warm
  13. land — a country
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. stock — goods
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. chest — of your body
  24. land — ground

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