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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. stock — shares
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. stock — goods
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. dip — to sink
  11. snap — to click
  12. wound — an injury
  13. fork — in a road
  14. band — a music group
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. present — there
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. kick — in football
  20. present — a gift
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. present — the time now
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. band — a ring

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