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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 120 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — in biology
  4. ground — the earth
  5. cue — for pool
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. cue — a hint
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — a subject
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — an injury
  13. stock — goods
  14. ground — a position
  15. stock — shares
  16. cue — a signal
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. cell — a phone

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