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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. content — happy
  3. mark — a grade
  4. current — happening now
  5. content — the amount
  6. bass — the fish
  7. rest — a break
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. stock — shares
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. current — electric
  13. rest — what's left
  14. ground — crushed
  15. rest — what's left
  16. kid — to tease
  17. kid — child
  18. bass — low music
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — the earth
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. current — of water
  24. mark — a trace

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