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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: sharp · date · chair · rest · saw · kid · row · stock

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. row — a line
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. rest — what's left
  5. saw — the tool
  6. rest — what's left
  7. chair — a leader
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. row — to paddle
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — child
  13. saw — the tool
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. date — the fruit
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stock — shares
  20. sharp — clever
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. stock — goods
  24. chair — a professorship

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