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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. cap — a lid
  3. fine — all right
  4. drill — a practice
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. dip — to sink
  7. drill — army training
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. cap — a hat
  10. date — the fruit
  11. game — wild animals
  12. drill — the tool
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. rule — government
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. stock — shares
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. rule — a law
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. fine — high quality
  23. game — a match
  24. cap — of ice

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