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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. sharp — clever
  3. stock — shares
  4. capital — money
  5. fork — in a road
  6. cell — a phone
  7. stock — goods
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. track — to keep track
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. mug — to rob
  14. track — a song
  15. mug — a cup
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. cell — in biology
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. deal — to handle
  22. track — a path
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. deal — an agreement

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