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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. face — to point toward
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. stock — goods
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. last — finally
  7. bass — low music
  8. face — to confront
  9. stock — shares
  10. game — wild animals
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. branch — a division
  13. last — to go on
  14. chair — a leader
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. last — final
  17. bass — the fish
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. face — part of the head
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. prune — to trim
  23. game — a match
  24. chair — a professorship

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