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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. swing — music
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. swing — in golf
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. stock — goods
  10. cold — not warm
  11. date — the fruit
  12. field — farmland
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. stock — shares
  15. board — a committee
  16. field — for sport
  17. toast — bread
  18. cold — an illness
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. swing — to play on
  22. board — to get on
  23. field — a subject
  24. date — on the calendar

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