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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. spell — magic
  5. ground — the earth
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. row — a line
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. pass — a permit
  10. ground — a position
  11. spell — a short time
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. content — happy
  15. stock — shares
  16. squash — to crush
  17. squash — the sport
  18. content — the amount
  19. ground — crushed
  20. rush — hurry
  21. spell — letters
  22. row — to paddle
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. rush — a thrill

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