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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cold · stock · charge · chest · deal · pit · object · face

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. pit — a hole
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. face — part of the head
  6. pit — in a race
  7. chest — of your body
  8. charge — a price
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. face — to confront
  11. cold — an illness
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. cold — not warm
  14. face — to point toward
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. object — to protest
  17. charge — electricity
  18. charge — in control
  19. object — a thing
  20. chest — of your body
  21. object — an aim
  22. stock — shares
  23. chest — a box
  24. deal — to handle

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