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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 116 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. rash — hasty
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. charge — a price
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. stock — goods
  7. mark — a grade
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. chair — a leader
  11. stock — shares
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. squash — the sport
  15. mark — a trace
  16. charge — in control
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. squash — to crush
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. deal — to handle
  24. charge — electricity

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