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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. stand — to bear
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — shares
  9. ground — the earth
  10. track — a song
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. mark — a trace
  13. stock — goods
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mark — a grade
  16. track — a path
  17. ground — crushed
  18. track — to keep track

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