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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. band — a music group
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. fine — high quality
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. ground — the earth
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. net — for catching
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. fine — all right
  12. band — a ring
  13. ground — crushed
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. stock — goods
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. snap — to click
  19. net — after costs
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. branch — a division
  22. net — in sport
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. ground — a position

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