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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. field — for sport
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. game — wild animals
  8. chair — a leader
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. stock — goods
  14. field — farmland
  15. game — a match
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. pass — a permit
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. field — a subject
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — high quality
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. pass — to spend time

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