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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. current — happening now
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. stock — goods
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. current — of water
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. march — the month
  11. current — electric
  12. board — to get on
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. stock — shares
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pitch — completely
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. board — a committee
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. march — the month
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. march — music

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