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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. chair — a leader
  3. pit — a hole
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. file — a document
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. file — a tool
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. stock — goods
  12. mark — a grade
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. stock — shares
  17. deal — to handle
  18. pit — in a race
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — in sport
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. mark — a trace

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