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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. swing — to play on
  4. cap — a lid
  5. rock — a stone
  6. ground — crushed
  7. cap — a hat
  8. sharp — clever
  9. ground — a position
  10. rock — music
  11. ground — the earth
  12. object — an aim
  13. object — to protest
  14. swing — in golf
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. cap — of ice
  17. object — a thing
  18. swing — music
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. stock — shares
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. stock — goods

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