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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. stock — shares
  4. file — a document
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. kid — child
  8. swing — to play on
  9. bass — low music
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. fork — in a road
  12. file — a line of people
  13. swing — in golf
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. bass — the fish
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. file — a tool
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. kid — to tease
  23. swing — music
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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