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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — goods
  6. degree — from a university
  7. can — to be able to
  8. cap — a lid
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. tube — a container
  11. cap — of ice
  12. rush — hurry
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. can — a tin
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. can — a tin
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. tube — the underground
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. degree — temperature

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