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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. stock — shares
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. kid — to tease
  9. craft — boats
  10. bulb — for light
  11. capital — a city
  12. kid — child
  13. capital — money
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cap — of ice
  16. bulb — for light
  17. cap — a lid
  18. stock — goods
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. craft — a skill
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. fan — to cool the air

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