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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 120 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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. stock — shares
  3. scale — in music
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. stock — goods
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. last — finally
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. last — final
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. scale — size or range
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — of the year

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