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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. capital — money
  5. ball — a dance
  6. rush — hurry
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. mine — for digging
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. vault — a safe
  16. stock — shares
  17. deal — to handle
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. capital — a city
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. ball — a great time

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