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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. roll — a list
  5. stock — goods
  6. land — a country
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. cold — not warm
  9. roll — a cake
  10. dip — to sink
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. vault — a safe
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. land — ground
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. stock — shares
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. cold — an illness
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. land — to come down

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