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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. cold — not warm
  3. pop — music
  4. pop — soda
  5. suit — to fit
  6. mark — a trace
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. net — after costs
  9. mark — a grade
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cold — an illness
  13. suit — clothes
  14. roll — a cake
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. suit — in cards
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. pop — to visit
  21. stock — goods
  22. roll — a list
  23. net — for catching
  24. prune — to trim

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