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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — shares
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. stock — goods
  5. court — for sport
  6. board — a committee
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. file — a document
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. board — to get on
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. court — of a king
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. file — a line of people
  19. file — a tool
  20. mine — for digging
  21. rush — hurry
  22. deal — to handle
  23. branch — a division
  24. court — of law

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