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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. net — after costs
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. scale — in music
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. net — in sport
  11. bat — the animal
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. stock — goods
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. stock — shares
  16. net — for catching
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — size or range
  20. pit — in a race
  21. deal — to handle
  22. chair — a leader
  23. pit — a hole
  24. tube — a container

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