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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. stock — goods
  3. roll — a list
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. scale — in music
  6. dip — to sink
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. mark — a grade
  9. race — the arms race
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. stock — shares
  13. file — a line of people
  14. scale — size or range
  15. roll — a cake
  16. file — a tool
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. mark — a trace
  20. race — humankind
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. file — a document
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. scale — for weighing

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