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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. stock — shares
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — to be able to
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. root — of a plant
  9. fine — all right
  10. capital — money
  11. can — a tin
  12. mate — to breed
  13. capital — a city
  14. root — of a word
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — wild animals
  18. stock — goods
  19. game — a match
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. root — the cause
  22. mate — a friend
  23. mate — a partner
  24. fork — in a road

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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