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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. club — for golf
  4. bank — of a river
  5. cap — a lid
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bank — for money
  9. club — for dancing
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. stock — shares
  12. net — for catching
  13. bank — for money
  14. stock — goods
  15. plane — a tool
  16. club — a group
  17. hand — help
  18. cap — a hat
  19. net — in sport
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. cap — of ice
  22. date — the fruit
  23. net — after costs
  24. hand — part of the body

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