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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. mine — for digging
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — a match
  6. lean — to bend
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. rock — music
  12. game — wild animals
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. lean — thin
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. stock — goods
  17. present — there
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. stock — shares
  20. rock — a stone
  21. present — the time now
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. present — a gift
  24. rock — to move gently

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