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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. ground — the earth
  3. stock — shares
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. file — a line of people
  6. cue — a signal
  7. ground — a position
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. file — a document
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. ground — crushed
  13. file — a tool
  14. stock — goods
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cue — for pool
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury

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