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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. land — a country
  3. deal — to handle
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. court — for sport
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. stock — shares
  13. court — of law
  14. pound — a weight
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. land — to come down
  17. race — the arms race
  18. land — ground
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. stock — goods
  22. race — humankind
  23. race — a contest
  24. court — of a king

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