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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 116 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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. stock — shares
  3. net — for catching
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. net — after costs
  10. rush — hurry
  11. net — in sport
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bass — low music
  16. stock — goods
  17. cold — an illness
  18. squash — the sport
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bass — the fish
  24. rush — a thrill

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