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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. prune — to trim
  4. pop — to visit
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. prune — to trim
  9. season — of the year
  10. pop — soda
  11. season — in sport
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. tear — from crying
  15. stock — goods
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. tear — to rip
  18. pop — music
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. tear — from crying
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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