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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. game — a match
  4. object — an aim
  5. spell — letters
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. face — part of the head
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — child
  13. tube — a container
  14. face — to confront
  15. object — to protest
  16. game — wild animals
  17. face — to point toward
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. stock — goods
  20. tube — the underground
  21. spell — magic
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. stock — shares
  24. spell — a short time

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