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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. shower — to wash
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. shower — rain
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wind — moving air
  9. ball — a great time
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. net — for catching
  12. key — in music
  13. net — in sport
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stock — goods
  18. stock — shares
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. ball — a dance
  21. key — for a lock
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. net — after costs
  24. key — the most important part

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