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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. shower — rain
  4. stock — shares
  5. shower — to wash
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. object — a thing
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. scale — size or range
  10. fine — all right
  11. object — to protest
  12. scale — in music
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. object — an aim
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stock — goods
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. stem — to come from

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