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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. stock — goods
  3. drill — army training
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — the tool
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. board — a committee
  9. band — a ring
  10. pop — soda
  11. band — a music group
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — to tease
  14. land — a country
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. land — to come down
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. board — to get on
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. stock — shares
  22. pop — music
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. pop — to visit

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