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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. shower — to wash
  3. bass — low music
  4. rest — what's left
  5. charge — a price
  6. rest — what's left
  7. field — for sport
  8. charge — electricity
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. charge — in control
  11. field — a subject
  12. face — part of the head
  13. shower — rain
  14. face — to point toward
  15. rest — a break
  16. face — to confront
  17. club — a group
  18. stock — shares
  19. field — farmland
  20. bass — the fish
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. club — for golf
  23. stock — goods
  24. club — for dancing

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