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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — shares
  3. last — to go on
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. saw — the tool
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pitch — completely
  9. last — final
  10. cap — of ice
  11. ground — crushed
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. ground — a position
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. saw — the tool
  19. ground — the earth
  20. cap — a hat
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. last — finally
  23. cap — a lid
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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