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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. stock — shares
  4. vault — a safe
  5. last — finally
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. stock — goods
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. shower — to wash
  11. plane — a tool
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. pitch — completely
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. cell — in biology
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. cell — a phone
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. shower — rain

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