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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — after costs
  3. march — music
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. dip — to sink
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. stock — goods
  8. saw — the tool
  9. march — the month
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. stock — shares
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. march — the month
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. pitch — completely
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. game — wild animals
  21. net — for catching
  22. game — a match
  23. saw — the tool
  24. pitch — a sports field

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