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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. tube — the underground
  3. stock — goods
  4. pop — to visit
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — help
  7. pop — music
  8. toast — bread
  9. fine — all right
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. land — ground
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. stock — shares
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. land — to come down
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. land — a country
  19. net — for catching
  20. tube — a container
  21. fine — high quality
  22. net — after costs
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. net — in sport

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