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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. wound — an injury
  3. stock — goods
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. pitch — completely
  7. land — ground
  8. pit — in a race
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pit — a hole
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. chest — of your body
  14. mark — a trace
  15. chest — a box
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. land — a country
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. mark — a grade
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. land — to come down
  24. stock — shares

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