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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 120 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. scale — in music
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. fine — high quality
  5. rash — a series
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. spring — of water
  10. spring — a coil
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. rush — hurry
  15. stock — shares
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. scale — size or range
  19. fine — all right
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stock — goods
  22. rash — hasty
  23. spring — the season
  24. rush — to hurry

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