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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 116 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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. rash — a series
  4. stock — shares
  5. mate — to breed
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. ground — a position
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — in a road
  10. net — for catching
  11. ball — a dance
  12. spring — a coil
  13. net — after costs
  14. rash — hasty
  15. ball — a great time
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. mate — a partner
  18. ground — crushed
  19. mate — a friend
  20. spring — of water
  21. net — in sport
  22. stock — goods
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. ground — the earth

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