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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rock — a stone
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. stock — shares
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. cell — a phone
  8. stock — goods
  9. cell — in biology
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. rash — hasty
  12. chair — a leader
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. wound — an injury
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. wound — an injury
  18. date — the fruit
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. rash — a series
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. cell — in a prison

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