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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 120 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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. net — for catching
  4. rush — hurry
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bass — the fish
  15. net — in sport
  16. band — a music group
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bass — low music
  19. band — a ring
  20. stock — goods
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. net — after costs

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