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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. ball — a dance
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. content — the amount
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — wild animals
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. game — a match
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pit — a hole
  13. deal — to handle
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chip — for betting
  17. ball — a great time
  18. stock — goods
  19. stock — shares
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. chip — to eat
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. content — happy

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