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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. content — happy
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. squash — to crush
  6. charge — electricity
  7. march — the month
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. march — the month
  11. content — the amount
  12. saw — the tool
  13. squash — the sport
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. charge — a price
  16. stock — goods
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. charge — in control
  21. saw — the tool
  22. march — music
  23. hand — help
  24. stock — shares

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