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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 116 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. net — after costs
  4. stock — goods
  5. net — for catching
  6. object — an aim
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. capital — a city
  9. scale — in music
  10. prune — to trim
  11. rock — music
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. prune — to trim
  16. capital — money
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. object — a thing
  19. rock — a stone
  20. net — in sport
  21. stock — shares
  22. object — to protest
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. scale — size or range

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