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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. row — a line
  3. scale — size or range
  4. can — a tin
  5. clip — a video
  6. scale — in music
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. row — to paddle
  10. wake — a trail
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. stock — shares
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. can — a tin
  15. clip — for paper
  16. can — to be able to
  17. clip — to cut
  18. stock — goods

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