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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. stock — goods
  4. ground — crushed
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bat — the animal
  7. pit — a hole
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. stock — shares
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. squash — the sport
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. kid — child
  18. pit — in a race
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. kid — to tease
  21. ground — the earth
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. temple — a place of worship

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