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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. content — the amount
  3. pitch — completely
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. craft — boats
  7. content — happy
  8. stock — goods
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — for digging
  11. fine — high quality
  12. craft — a skill
  13. game — a match
  14. game — wild animals
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. net — after costs
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. stock — shares
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. fine — all right
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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