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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. firm — a company
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — to paddle
  5. track — a path
  6. fork — in a road
  7. track — to keep track
  8. row — a line
  9. field — a subject
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. ground — crushed
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. field — farmland
  15. ground — the earth
  16. stock — shares
  17. firm — decided
  18. field — for sport
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. firm — steady
  21. stock — goods
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. ground — a position
  24. track — a song

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