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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. game — wild animals
  3. file — a line of people
  4. ground — the earth
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. march — the month
  7. charge — in control
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. game — a match
  10. charge — a price
  11. stock — goods
  12. file — a document
  13. craft — a skill
  14. march — the month
  15. charge — electricity
  16. file — a tool
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. stock — shares
  20. ground — a position
  21. craft — boats
  22. march — music
  23. ground — crushed
  24. wind — moving air

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