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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  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. ground — crushed
  2. stock — shares
  3. ground — the earth
  4. current — happening now
  5. current — electric
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. tube — the underground
  9. rash — a series
  10. staff — employees
  11. staff — a stick
  12. drill — army training
  13. rash — hasty
  14. staff — employees
  15. ground — a position
  16. current — of water
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. band — a ring
  19. drill — a practice
  20. stock — goods
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. band — a music group
  23. drill — the tool
  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