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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. firm — steady
  3. bat — the animal
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. firm — decided
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. game — a match
  8. game — wild animals
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. tube — a container
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. deal — to handle
  15. stock — shares
  16. tube — the underground
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. stock — goods
  19. stem — to come from
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. firm — a company
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. deal — an agreement

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