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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. ground — crushed
  7. last — to go on
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. date — the fruit
  12. ground — the earth
  13. spell — a short time
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pound — a weight
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. last — final
  18. stock — shares
  19. spell — magic
  20. last — finally
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. stock — goods
  23. snap — to click
  24. spell — letters

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