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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. fork — in a road
  4. game — a match
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. kid — to tease
  7. stock — goods
  8. rush — hurry
  9. kid — child
  10. net — after costs
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. net — for catching
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. stock — shares
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. game — wild animals
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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