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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. stock — shares
  3. pop — to visit
  4. land — ground
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — a thing
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. fine — all right
  10. fine — high quality
  11. pop — soda
  12. kid — to tease
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. kid — child
  15. pop — music
  16. land — a country
  17. stock — goods
  18. land — to come down

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