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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 116 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. fine — all right
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. stock — shares
  5. charge — electricity
  6. mate — a friend
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. fine — high quality
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. stock — goods
  12. root — of a word
  13. charge — in control
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. mate — to breed
  16. hand — in cards
  17. spring — a coil
  18. mate — a partner
  19. spring — the season
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. root — the cause
  22. root — of a plant
  23. charge — a price
  24. spring — of water

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