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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 120 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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. tube — a container
  3. staff — employees
  4. staff — employees
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. wound — an injury
  10. prune — to trim
  11. file — a line of people
  12. tube — the underground
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a document
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. prune — to trim
  20. stock — shares
  21. deal — to handle
  22. staff — a stick
  23. stock — goods
  24. hand — help

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