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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. ground — the earth
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. board — to get on
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. board — a committee
  7. net — for catching
  8. stock — shares
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. ground — a position
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. net — after costs
  13. file — a document
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. file — a line of people
  18. stock — goods
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. branch — a division
  23. net — in sport
  24. ground — crushed

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