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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. stock — shares
  3. stock — goods
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. ball — a great time
  6. tear — from crying
  7. ball — a dance
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. present — a gift
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. tear — from crying
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. capital — a city
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. present — there
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. capital — money
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. tear — to rip
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. present — the time now

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