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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. content — happy
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. scale — size or range
  9. sharp — clever
  10. rock — music
  11. capital — money
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. stock — shares
  16. content — the amount
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. stock — goods
  20. capital — a city
  21. rock — a stone
  22. scale — in music
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. rock — to move gently

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