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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. stock — shares
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. fall — to drop
  6. track — a song
  7. current — happening now
  8. fall — to drop
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. march — the month
  12. sharp — clever
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. track — to keep track
  15. fall — the season
  16. track — a path
  17. march — the month
  18. mine — for digging
  19. current — of water
  20. stock — goods
  21. current — electric
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. march — music

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