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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'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. ground — the earth
  4. net — for catching
  5. spell — letters
  6. wake — a trail
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. chair — a leader
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. spell — magic
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. stock — goods
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. ground — crushed
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. net — in sport
  21. ground — a position
  22. net — after costs
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. spell — a short 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