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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a document
  4. land — to come down
  5. stock — shares
  6. file — a line of people
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. wound — an injury
  10. land — a country
  11. mark — a trace
  12. firm — steady
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. land — ground
  15. wound — an injury
  16. stem — to come from
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. mark — a grade
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. firm — a company
  22. stock — goods
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. stem — a stem cell

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