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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. field — for sport
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. mug — a face
  5. craft — a skill
  6. craft — boats
  7. rock — a stone
  8. field — a subject
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. stock — goods
  11. chair — a leader
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. mug — to rob
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. field — farmland
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. stock — shares
  24. mug — a cup

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