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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bat — the animal
  4. ball — a dance
  5. mug — a face
  6. ball — a great time
  7. pound — a weight
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. current — of water
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. mug — to rob
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — in cards
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. current — happening now
  20. current — electric
  21. mug — a cup
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. ball — a round shape

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