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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. tear — from crying
  7. stock — shares
  8. stock — goods
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. rush — hurry
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. bass — the fish
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. content — happy
  19. bass — low music
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. content — the amount
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. content — videos and posts

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