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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. stock — shares
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. degree — an amount
  6. roll — a list
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — a phone
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. row — a line
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — from a university
  18. row — to paddle
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. roll — a cake
  22. stock — goods
  23. pitch — completely
  24. arm — part of the body

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