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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stock — goods
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. prune — to trim
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. cold — an illness
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. foot — a measure
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. prune — to trim
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. pitch — completely
  22. stock — shares
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. leaves — lets stay

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