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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 120 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. stock — shares
  6. bank — for money
  7. shower — rain
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — for digging
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. pop — music
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bank — for money
  14. wind — moving air
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. stock — goods
  17. bank — of a river
  18. pop — to visit
  19. fine — all right
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. rash — hasty
  22. fine — high quality
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. rash — a series

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