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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. rash — a series
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. fine — high quality
  10. fine — all right
  11. ground — the earth
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. ground — crushed
  14. stock — shares
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. wake — a trail
  17. rash — hasty
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. stock — goods

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