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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bound — obliged
  3. clip — a video
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. rush — hurry
  6. bulb — for light
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a hole
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. clip — to cut
  11. stock — shares
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. clip — for paper
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. bound — tied together
  18. bound — certain

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