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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 116 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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. ground — the earth
  3. ground — a position
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. ground — crushed
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. stock — shares
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. stock — goods
  12. stem — to come from
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. wind — moving air
  18. snap — to click

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