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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. degree — an amount
  3. stock — goods
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. spell — a short time
  6. degree — temperature
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. charge — electricity
  9. net — after costs
  10. degree — from a university
  11. capital — a city
  12. can — to be able to
  13. charge — in control
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — for catching
  16. capital — money
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — magic
  19. stock — shares
  20. season — in sport
  21. charge — a price
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. season — of the year
  24. can — a tin

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