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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. rest — what's left
  3. sharp — clever
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. chest — a box
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. field — a subject
  10. rest — a break
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. chest — of your body
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — in sport
  17. chest — of your body
  18. net — after costs
  19. stock — shares
  20. field — for sport
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. stock — goods
  23. rest — what's left
  24. field — farmland

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