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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. mine — for digging
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wound — an injury
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. pit — in a race
  10. stock — goods
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. cell — a phone
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. board — to get on
  17. sharp — clever
  18. pit — a hole
  19. stock — shares
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. board — a committee
  24. wound — an injury

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