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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — wild animals
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. firm — decided
  6. bass — low music
  7. game — a match
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. last — finally
  10. firm — steady
  11. court — of a king
  12. court — for sport
  13. rule — government
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. last — to go on
  17. bass — the fish
  18. firm — a company
  19. stock — goods
  20. court — of law
  21. stock — shares
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — a law
  24. last — final

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