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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. object — to protest
  6. object — an aim
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. spring — the season
  10. ground — the earth
  11. object — a thing
  12. stock — goods
  13. spring — a coil
  14. ground — a position
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. spring — of water
  18. stock — shares

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