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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 120 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. object — an aim
  5. stock — shares
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. season — in sport
  9. content — the amount
  10. fine — high quality
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. bat — the animal
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. object — a thing
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. content — happy
  20. fine — all right
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. object — to protest
  24. season — of the year

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