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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. ground — a position
  3. stock — shares
  4. ground — crushed
  5. kid — to tease
  6. rule — a law
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. stock — goods
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. rule — government
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. ground — the earth
  22. kid — child
  23. cold — not warm
  24. racket — a loud noise

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