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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. content — happy
  5. degree — an amount
  6. content — the amount
  7. stock — goods
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. board — to get on
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stock — shares
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. perch — the fish
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. board — a committee
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — from a university
  24. fall — the season

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