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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — shares
  6. degree — from a university
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. cue — a hint
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. mark — a trace
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. kid — child
  15. mark — a grade
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. cue — a signal
  18. degree — temperature
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. degree — an amount
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. kid — to tease
  24. deal — to handle

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