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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. mate — a partner
  4. field — a subject
  5. stock — goods
  6. firm — steady
  7. bore — to tire
  8. bore — to drill
  9. ground — crushed
  10. ground — the earth
  11. firm — decided
  12. mate — to breed
  13. rash — hasty
  14. field — farmland
  15. firm — a company
  16. mate — a friend
  17. rash — a series
  18. ground — a position
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. field — for sport
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. stock — shares
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. racket — for tennis

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