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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. pit — a hole
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. sharp — clever
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. pit — in a race
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. stock — shares
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. hand — help
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rash — a series
  19. stock — goods
  20. shower — to wash
  21. fork — in a road
  22. hand — in cards
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. pitcher — a jug

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