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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. mark — a grade
  3. drill — the tool
  4. drill — army training
  5. kid — to tease
  6. land — a country
  7. fine — all right
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. kid — child
  11. fall — the season
  12. drill — a practice
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. pit — in a race
  17. fall — to drop
  18. stock — shares
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. land — to come down
  21. land — ground
  22. stock — goods
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fine — high quality

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