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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 116 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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. stock — goods
  3. land — ground
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. land — a country
  7. mine — for digging
  8. tube — the underground
  9. wake — a trail
  10. game — wild animals
  11. squash — to crush
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. tube — a container
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. squash — the sport
  18. land — to come down
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. stock — shares
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wake — before a funeral

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