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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. march — the month
  5. land — ground
  6. stock — goods
  7. march — music
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cap — a hat
  10. march — the month
  11. land — to come down
  12. cap — of ice
  13. game — a match
  14. wound — an injury
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. game — wild animals
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. land — a country
  20. cap — a lid
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stock — shares
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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