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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. last — finally
  3. last — final
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. game — a match
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. scale — in music
  13. game — wild animals
  14. stock — goods
  15. bore — to drill
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. last — to go on
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — the underground
  23. scale — size or range
  24. bore — to tire

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