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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. pop — music
  3. spring — the season
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. cap — of ice
  10. pop — to visit
  11. wake — a trail
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. chip — for betting
  16. stock — goods
  17. chip — to eat
  18. cap — a hat
  19. cap — a lid
  20. sharp — clever
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. band — a ring
  23. stock — shares
  24. chip — in a computer

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