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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 112 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. spring — of water
  3. chair — a leader
  4. spring — the season
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. march — music
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — crushed
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — shares
  13. perch — the fish
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. spring — a coil
  18. ground — a position
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. march — the month
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. deal — to handle

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