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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 120 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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. face — to confront
  3. can — a tin
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. race — a contest
  6. firm — steady
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — to paddle
  9. face — part of the head
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. race — humankind
  12. last — finally
  13. can — a tin
  14. last — to go on
  15. firm — a company
  16. can — to be able to
  17. last — final
  18. race — the arms race
  19. stock — shares
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. face — to point toward
  23. row — a line
  24. firm — decided

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