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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. court — for sport
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. court — of law
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. file — a document
  7. mine — for digging
  8. plane — a tool
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. file — a line of people
  11. stock — goods
  12. file — a tool
  13. fall — the season
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. stock — shares
  16. court — of a king
  17. fall — to drop
  18. stock — a soup base

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