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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. fine — high quality
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. file — a document
  6. cap — of ice
  7. stock — shares
  8. rock — a stone
  9. bat — the animal
  10. file — a tool
  11. track — a path
  12. wake — a trail
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. cap — a lid
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. cap — a hat
  19. stock — goods
  20. rock — music
  21. file — a line of people
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. track — a song

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