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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. race — a contest
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. stock — shares
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cell — in biology
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — the earth
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. cell — a phone
  13. scale — in music
  14. stock — goods
  15. scale — size or range
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. race — the arms race
  19. chair — a leader
  20. game — a match
  21. ground — crushed
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. race — humankind
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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