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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — rain
  3. stock — shares
  4. key — for a lock
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. swing — in golf
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. pop — soda
  9. bat — the animal
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. fine — high quality
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. stock — goods
  14. swing — to play on
  15. pop — to visit
  16. fine — all right
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. pop — music
  19. key — the most important part
  20. squash — the sport
  21. squash — to crush
  22. key — in music
  23. swing — music
  24. fine — a penalty

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