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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. march — the month
  3. march — the month
  4. stock — goods
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. stock — shares
  7. squash — to crush
  8. dip — to sink
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. squash — the sport
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. wake — a trail
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. last — finally
  15. race — a contest
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. race — humankind
  18. last — final
  19. race — the arms race
  20. march — music
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. last — to go on
  24. calf — a young animal

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