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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. roll — a cake
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. file — a tool
  6. file — a line of people
  7. net — after costs
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — in sport
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. stock — shares
  15. toast — bread
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. file — a document
  19. kid — to tease
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. roll — a list
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. pitcher — a jug

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