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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. net — for catching
  4. cold — an illness
  5. tube — a container
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stock — goods
  8. tube — the underground
  9. stock — shares
  10. net — in sport
  11. squash — the sport
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. date — the fruit
  16. cold — not warm
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. net — after costs
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. squash — the vegetable

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