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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. cue — a hint
  3. land — ground
  4. field — a subject
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. stock — goods
  7. stand — to bear
  8. cue — for pool
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. stock — shares
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. field — for sport
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. land — to come down
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. field — farmland
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. land — a country
  22. plane — a tool
  23. date — the fruit
  24. dip — to sink

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