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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. stock — goods
  3. ground — crushed
  4. fall — to drop
  5. ground — a position
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. track — a song
  8. rash — a series
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. fall — to drop
  11. track — to keep track
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. fall — the season
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. tube — a container
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. stock — shares
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. tube — the underground
  20. ground — the earth
  21. rash — hasty
  22. drill — army training
  23. track — a path
  24. drill — the tool

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