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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. stock — goods
  3. land — to come down
  4. craft — boats
  5. court — of law
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. dip — to sink
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. court — for sport
  11. land — ground
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. track — to keep track
  14. court — of a king
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. bat — the animal
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. land — a country
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. track — a song
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. craft — a skill
  24. stock — shares

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