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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. kid — to tease
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. prune — to trim
  7. squash — to crush
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. cue — a signal
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. stock — shares
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. rock — a stone
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. rock — music
  21. cue — a hint
  22. squash — the sport
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. kid — child

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