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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. last — to go on
  3. bore — to tire
  4. shower — to wash
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. staff — employees
  7. bore — to drill
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. shower — rain
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. staff — a stick
  14. staff — employees
  15. last — final
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. stock — goods
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. last — finally
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — in music
  24. bowl — to roll

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