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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. mine — for digging
  3. stock — goods
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. content — happy
  9. suit — clothes
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. suit — in cards
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — the amount
  15. stock — shares
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. rule — government
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. suit — to fit
  21. rule — a law
  22. bat — the animal
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. bowl — a football final

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