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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cue — for pool
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. fall — to drop
  6. game — a match
  7. fall — the season
  8. season — of the year
  9. stock — shares
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. degree — from a university
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cue — a signal
  15. degree — an amount
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. cue — a hint
  18. fork — in a road
  19. cap — a lid
  20. degree — temperature
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. cap — a hat
  23. season — in sport
  24. cap — of ice

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