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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 124 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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. content — happy
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. cold — not warm
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — a grade
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. content — the amount
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — clever

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