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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 116 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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. tube — a container
  6. cell — in biology
  7. craft — boats
  8. row — to paddle
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — the underground
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. craft — a skill
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. stock — shares
  16. mark — a grade
  17. bat — the animal
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. land — to come down
  20. row — a line
  21. mark — a trace
  22. land — a country
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. land — ground

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