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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. can — a tin
  4. stock — shares
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. deal — to handle
  7. club — for dancing
  8. content — happy
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. squash — the sport
  11. bat — the animal
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. can — a tin
  14. club — for golf
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. stock — goods
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. can — to be able to
  19. club — a group
  20. capital — a city
  21. content — the amount
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. squash — the vegetable

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