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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 124 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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. stock — goods
  3. stand — to bear
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. club — for dancing
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. court — of law
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. court — for sport
  13. stock — shares
  14. club — a group
  15. court — of a king
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. pound — a weight
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — rain
  21. club — for golf
  22. mine — for digging
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. shower — to wash

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