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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. wound — an injury
  11. stock — goods
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. pound — a weight
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. wind — moving air
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. stock — shares
  24. ruler — for measuring

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