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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 is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. suit — clothes
  3. suit — to fit
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. stock — shares
  8. pitch — completely
  9. land — ground
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. band — a music group
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. track — to keep track
  14. band — a ring
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. plane — a tool
  18. bat — the animal
  19. track — a path
  20. land — a country
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. land — to come down
  23. stock — goods
  24. suit — in cards

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