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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. squash — the sport
  3. board — a committee
  4. scale — in music
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. chest — a box
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. chest — of your body
  9. stock — shares
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. scale — size or range
  12. fine — all right
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. lean — thin
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. squash — to crush
  17. stock — goods
  18. chest — of your body
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. lean — to bend
  23. snap — to click
  24. board — to get on

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