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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pound — a weight
  5. current — electric
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — of your body
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. mine — for digging
  10. stock — goods
  11. current — of water
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. chest — a box
  15. club — a group
  16. stock — shares
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. current — happening now
  20. club — for dancing
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. club — for golf
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. pound — for dogs

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