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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. stock — goods
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. board — to get on
  5. row — a line
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. drill — army training
  10. mark — a grade
  11. ball — a great time
  12. board — a committee
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. stock — shares
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — to paddle
  17. ground — a position
  18. drill — the tool
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. ball — a dance
  21. mark — a trace
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. ground — the earth
  24. drill — a practice

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