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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. stock — goods
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. fork — in a road
  6. current — happening now
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. current — of water
  10. tear — from crying
  11. current — electric
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. squash — the sport
  15. game — wild animals
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. spell — letters
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. spell — a short time
  20. game — a match
  21. stock — shares
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. bowl — a football final

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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