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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  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. pitcher — a jug
  2. stock — goods
  3. stand — to bear
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. fall — to drop
  7. object — an aim
  8. fall — to drop
  9. land — ground
  10. swing — in golf
  11. object — to protest
  12. stock — shares
  13. object — a thing
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — to play on
  17. fall — the season
  18. land — to come down
  19. land — a country
  20. squash — the sport
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. squash — to crush
  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