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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. stock — shares
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. tube — a container
  7. bass — the fish
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — what's left
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. cell — in biology
  15. tube — the underground
  16. rest — a break
  17. date — the fruit
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — a phone
  23. bass — low music
  24. tube — in a tire

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