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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 116 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. object — to protest
  4. sharp — clever
  5. stock — goods
  6. kid — child
  7. land — to come down
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. ground — a position
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. ground — the earth
  16. land — ground
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. object — a thing
  19. object — an aim
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. ground — crushed
  23. stock — shares
  24. land — a country

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