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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 116 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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. fall — to drop
  4. net — in sport
  5. staff — employees
  6. fall — the season
  7. stock — shares
  8. staff — employees
  9. stock — goods
  10. net — for catching
  11. bear — the animal
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. land — ground
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. last — final
  16. fall — to drop
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. staff — a stick
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. land — a country
  21. land — to come down
  22. last — finally
  23. bear — the animal
  24. net — after costs

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