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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. season — of the year
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. stock — goods
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. bulb — for light
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. season — in sport
  12. vault — a safe
  13. mark — a trace
  14. bat — the animal
  15. mark — a grade
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. wind — moving air
  19. stock — shares
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. bulb — for light
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. season — to add flavour

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