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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 ________________ took off on time.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. band — a music group
  4. chip — to eat
  5. scale — size or range
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. pitch — completely
  8. stock — shares
  9. kid — to tease
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. band — a ring
  12. plane — a tool
  13. scale — in music
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kid — child
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. chip — for betting
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. mouse — the animal

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