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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. deal — to handle
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. march — music
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. rash — a series
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. stock — goods
  13. march — the month
  14. spell — letters
  15. stock — shares
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. spell — a short time
  19. march — the month
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. spell — magic

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