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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 120 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. fine — all right
  3. capital — money
  4. pound — a weight
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — a tin
  8. capital — a city
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. chest — a box
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. present — the time now
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. fine — high quality
  19. stock — shares
  20. chest — of your body
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. chest — of your body
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. present — there

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