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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. track — a path
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. fine — high quality
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. wind — moving air
  9. band — a music group
  10. cold — not warm
  11. band — a ring
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stock — shares
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a song
  18. stock — goods
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. wind — moving air
  22. pitch — completely
  23. fine — all right
  24. safe — out of danger

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