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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. sharp — clever
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. ground — a position
  9. race — the arms race
  10. ground — the earth
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. race — humankind
  13. plane — a tool
  14. race — a contest
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. stock — goods
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. deal — to handle
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. ground — crushed
  23. bat — the animal
  24. plane — an aircraft

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