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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. stock — goods
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bulb — for light
  9. mug — a face
  10. bulb — for light
  11. saw — the tool
  12. stock — shares
  13. pit — in a race
  14. sharp — clever
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. shower — rain
  18. pit — a hole
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. mug — to rob
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. shower — to wash

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