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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. date — the fruit
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. net — in sport
  12. stock — goods
  13. foot — a measure
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. land — ground
  16. fine — high quality
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. land — to come down
  19. stock — shares
  20. land — a country
  21. fine — all right
  22. snap — to click
  23. net — for catching
  24. net — after costs

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