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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. season — of the year
  3. drill — the tool
  4. stock — goods
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. stock — shares
  13. drill — army training
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. mark — a trace
  17. pitch — completely
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. season — in sport
  20. drill — a practice
  21. content — happy
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. content — the amount

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