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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. stock — goods
  3. foot — a measure
  4. capital — a city
  5. squash — the sport
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. file — a document
  8. stock — shares
  9. file — a line of people
  10. squash — to crush
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. drill — army training
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. drill — a practice
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. capital — money
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. drill — the tool
  24. stock — a soup base

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