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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bat — the animal
  4. file — a tool
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. club — for golf
  7. chair — a leader
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. club — for dancing
  10. club — a group
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. kick — in football
  13. file — a document
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. stock — goods
  18. stock — shares
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. coach — a trainer

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