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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 116 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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. track — a song
  4. track — a path
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stock — goods
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. current — electric
  11. band — a music group
  12. stock — shares
  13. current — happening now
  14. current — of water
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. band — a ring
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. track — to keep track
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. fork — in a road
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. band — a rubber band

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