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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. stock — shares
  3. bass — the fish
  4. bear — the animal
  5. clip — a video
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. clip — to cut
  8. content — happy
  9. stock — goods
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. bass — low music
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. content — the amount
  18. stock — a soup base

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