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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. stock — shares
  3. hand — help
  4. race — humankind
  5. club — a group
  6. stock — goods
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mate — a friend
  9. race — a contest
  10. club — for dancing
  11. tear — from crying
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. race — the arms race
  15. club — for golf
  16. spell — letters
  17. spell — a short time
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. hand — in cards
  20. ball — a dance
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. ball — a great time
  24. mate — to breed

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