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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. last — finally
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — crushed
  5. stock — goods
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. ground — a position
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. track — a path
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. last — to go on
  16. track — to keep track
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. track — a song
  19. roll — a cake
  20. stock — shares
  21. toast — bread
  22. last — final
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. toast — the most admired

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