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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. saw — the tool
  3. field — a subject
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. wind — moving air
  11. cue — for pool
  12. stock — goods
  13. snap — to click
  14. wind — moving air
  15. capital — money
  16. cue — a signal
  17. stock — shares
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. capital — a city
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. deal — to handle
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. capital — a big letter

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