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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. suit — to fit
  3. last — to go on
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. net — after costs
  7. last — finally
  8. pound — a weight
  9. net — for catching
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. court — of a king
  13. suit — in cards
  14. suit — clothes
  15. stock — shares
  16. last — final
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. net — in sport
  20. branch — a division
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. court — for sport
  24. stock — goods

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