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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 120 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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bank — for money
  3. stock — goods
  4. wind — moving air
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bank — for money
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. chip — for betting
  11. stock — shares
  12. bank — of a river
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. staff — employees
  15. stem — to come from
  16. chip — to eat
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. staff — employees
  21. pit — in a race
  22. staff — a stick
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. stock — a soup base

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