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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  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 — a soup base
  2. rule — government
  3. ball — a dance
  4. degree — an amount
  5. spell — magic
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. stock — goods
  8. net — in sport
  9. ball — a great time
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. perch — the fish
  13. spell — letters
  14. spell — a short time
  15. net — for catching
  16. degree — from a university
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. degree — temperature
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. rule — a law
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stock — shares
  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