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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. present — a gift
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. stock — goods
  5. court — of a king
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. present — there
  10. present — the time now
  11. cue — for pool
  12. court — of law
  13. bear — the animal
  14. cue — a hint
  15. cue — a signal
  16. court — for sport
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. ground — crushed
  19. ground — the earth
  20. ground — a position
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bear — the animal
  24. hand — help

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