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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. cold — an illness
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. chair — a leader
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. stock — shares
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. squash — the sport
  16. cold — not warm
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. stock — goods
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. squash — to crush
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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