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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. field — farmland
  4. chip — for betting
  5. net — after costs
  6. prune — to trim
  7. net — in sport
  8. stock — goods
  9. prune — to trim
  10. season — in sport
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. chip — to eat
  14. field — for sport
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. field — a subject
  17. season — of the year
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. pit — a hole
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. net — for catching
  23. stock — shares
  24. pit — in a race

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