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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. march — the month
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. ground — a position
  7. mark — a grade
  8. season — of the year
  9. snap — to click
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. stock — goods
  14. ground — crushed
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. ground — the earth
  17. game — wild animals
  18. march — music
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. season — in sport
  22. game — a match
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. march — the month

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