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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. land — ground
  3. rash — a series
  4. land — a country
  5. ground — a position
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — goods
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. spell — magic
  13. rash — hasty
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. ground — crushed
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. kick — in football
  21. spell — letters
  22. ground — the earth
  23. spell — a short time
  24. land — to come down

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