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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. season — of the year
  3. ground — crushed
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — to paddle
  7. dip — to sink
  8. pit — a hole
  9. stock — shares
  10. band — a ring
  11. pit — in a race
  12. race — the arms race
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. season — in sport
  15. ground — the earth
  16. stock — goods
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. row — a line
  19. race — a contest
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. ground — a position
  23. race — humankind
  24. stock — a soup base

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