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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. can — a tin
  4. court — of law
  5. mate — a friend
  6. can — a tin
  7. rash — hasty
  8. degree — temperature
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. degree — from a university
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. court — of a king
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. court — for sport
  15. mate — to breed
  16. can — to be able to
  17. stock — goods
  18. perch — the fish
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. rash — a series
  21. degree — an amount
  22. mate — a partner
  23. perch — for a bird
  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