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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 124 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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. swing — in golf
  3. net — in sport
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. fine — high quality
  8. fine — all right
  9. craft — boats
  10. stock — shares
  11. net — for catching
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. swing — to play on
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. chip — to eat
  18. chip — for betting
  19. squash — to crush
  20. craft — a skill
  21. swing — music
  22. squash — the sport
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. net — after costs

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