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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. pound — a weight
  4. stock — goods
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. last — final
  7. board — a committee
  8. face — to point toward
  9. stock — shares
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. last — finally
  13. bat — the animal
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. board — to get on
  17. face — part of the head
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. last — to go on
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. fine — all right
  23. face — to confront
  24. pound — to hit hard

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