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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pop — music
  3. fine — all right
  4. net — after costs
  5. fine — high quality
  6. cue — a hint
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cue — for pool
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — goods
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. net — in sport
  13. saw — the tool
  14. pop — soda
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. net — for catching

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