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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — wild animals
  4. present — there
  5. fall — to drop
  6. stock — shares
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. prune — to trim
  10. field — farmland
  11. fall — the season
  12. prune — to trim
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. field — for sport
  16. stock — goods
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. present — the time now
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. present — a gift
  21. field — a subject
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. game — a match
  24. stock — a soup base

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