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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. fine — high quality
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. march — music
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — hasty
  11. capital — a city
  12. march — the month
  13. fine — all right
  14. rash — a series
  15. capital — money
  16. march — the month
  17. hand — in cards
  18. pass — a permit
  19. bat — the animal
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. hand — help
  22. stock — shares
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. fine — a penalty

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