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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. stock — goods
  3. net — for catching
  4. stock — shares
  5. net — after costs
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. key — for a lock
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. march — music
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — an amount
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. pitch — completely
  16. key — in music
  17. degree — temperature
  18. saw — the tool
  19. key — the most important part
  20. march — the month
  21. saw — the tool
  22. march — the month
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. lash — to lash out

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