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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. land — ground
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. chip — for betting
  5. chip — to eat
  6. stock — goods
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. pitch — completely
  10. foot — a measure
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. track — to keep track
  14. stock — shares
  15. track — a path
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. land — a country
  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