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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 124 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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. rash — a series
  5. spring — the season
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. wound — an injury
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. stock — goods
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. wound — an injury
  15. date — the fruit
  16. rock — a stone
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — rain
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — of water
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. rock — music
  23. rash — hasty
  24. stock — shares

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