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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. spring — a coil
  4. can — a tin
  5. hand — help
  6. stock — shares
  7. can — a tin
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — for sport
  10. charge — electricity
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. field — a subject
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — to tease
  15. spring — of water
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. charge — a price
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. spring — the season
  22. hand — in cards
  23. stock — goods
  24. can — to be able to

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