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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. stock — goods
  3. rule — government
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. prune — to trim
  6. tear — from crying
  7. cue — a signal
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. tear — to rip
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. present — a gift
  12. present — the time now
  13. tear — from crying
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. stock — shares
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. present — there
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. cue — a hint
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. rule — a law
  23. cue — for pool
  24. prune — to trim

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