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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. stock — goods
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. fall — to drop
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. fall — to drop
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — shares
  17. mine — for digging
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. fall — the season
  21. content — the amount
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. content — happy
  24. patient — a sick person

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