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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. net — for catching
  4. stock — shares
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. cell — a phone
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. pop — music
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. pop — to visit
  14. cell — in biology
  15. stock — goods
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. net — in sport
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. net — after costs
  24. wake — a trail

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