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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 water is too ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stock — goods
  3. lean — thin
  4. spell — a short time
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. track — to keep track
  7. cold — an illness
  8. mate — a friend
  9. spell — magic
  10. track — a song
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. mate — to breed
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. mate — a partner
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. lean — to bend
  19. track — a path
  20. spell — letters
  21. stock — shares
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. pitch — completely

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