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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 120 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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — for catching
  4. chip — for betting
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — shares
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. net — in sport
  10. cap — a hat
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. cap — of ice
  14. capital — a city
  15. cap — a lid
  16. sharp — clever
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. spring — the season
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. spring — a coil
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. spring — of water
  23. chip — to eat
  24. capital — money

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