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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 116 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. rush — hurry
  3. saw — the tool
  4. last — final
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. key — the most important part
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. capital — money
  9. key — for a lock
  10. stock — goods
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. stock — shares
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. last — to go on
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. last — finally
  20. stand — to bear
  21. key — in music
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — a city
  24. wake — a trail

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