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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. stock — goods
  3. rash — hasty
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. stock — shares
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. cell — a phone
  13. pass — a permit
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. sharp — clever
  16. rash — a series
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. march — the month

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