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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. fine — high quality
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. fine — all right
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. roll — a list
  11. rash — a series
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. stock — goods
  15. rash — hasty
  16. roll — a cake
  17. bat — the animal
  18. stock — shares
  19. pit — a hole
  20. perch — the fish
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. pit — in a race
  24. perch — for a bird

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