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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. ground — crushed
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mug — a face
  6. ground — a position
  7. stock — goods
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. mug — to rob
  12. cell — in biology
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. stock — shares
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mug — a cup
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cell — a phone
  22. ground — the earth
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cold — not warm

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