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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. stock — shares
  3. wind — moving air
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. season — in sport
  6. shower — to wash
  7. net — after costs
  8. shower — rain
  9. season — of the year
  10. wind — moving air
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. mug — a cup
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. net — for catching
  18. mug — a face
  19. mug — to rob
  20. stock — goods
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. net — in sport
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. wind — to turn a key

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