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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to click
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pound — a weight
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. stock — goods
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. kid — to tease
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. kid — child
  18. pound — to hit hard

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