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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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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: board · mark · bay · last · bore · cold · sharp · stock

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. bore — to tire
  3. sharp — clever
  4. mark — a grade
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. mark — a trace
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. cold — not warm
  10. last — final
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. last — to go on
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. board — a committee
  17. stock — shares
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bore — to drill
  21. last — finally
  22. board — to get on
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. stock — goods

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