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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bound — tied together
  3. season — in sport
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. stock — shares
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. bound — obliged
  10. stock — goods
  11. pit — in a race
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. march — the month
  16. season — of the year
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. march — the month
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. march — music
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bound — certain
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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