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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. stock — goods
  3. drill — the tool
  4. drill — a practice
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. club — a group
  7. game — a match
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. mug — to rob
  11. stock — shares
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. lie — to recline
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stem — to come from
  17. club — for golf
  18. drill — army training
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. mug — a cup
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. club — for dancing
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bark — to shout

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