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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. stock — goods
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. club — for golf
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. object — an aim
  7. stock — shares
  8. club — a group
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. object — to protest
  13. bound — obliged
  14. object — a thing
  15. capital — money
  16. scale — size or range
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. scale — in music
  19. bound — certain
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. bound — tied together
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. pitch — completely

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