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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. court — of law
  3. stock — goods
  4. court — for sport
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. dip — to sink
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. wake — a trail
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. court — of a king
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cap — a hat
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. pit — a hole
  18. cap — a lid
  19. hand — help
  20. stock — shares
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. race — humankind
  24. race — the arms race

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