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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'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. stock — goods
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cue — a signal
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. game — a match
  8. file — a line of people
  9. swing — to play on
  10. stock — shares
  11. swing — in golf
  12. mark — a trace
  13. fork — in a road
  14. swing — music
  15. file — a document
  16. cue — for pool
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. file — a tool
  19. mark — a grade
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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