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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. firm — steady
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. bank — for money
  10. drill — army training
  11. stock — shares
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — decided
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. bank — for money
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bank — of a river
  19. drill — a practice
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to click
  22. drill — the tool
  23. last — finally
  24. bat — the animal

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