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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. wound — an injury
  3. face — to confront
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. rule — government
  6. stock — goods
  7. clip — to cut
  8. fine — high quality
  9. face — to point toward
  10. clip — a video
  11. wound — an injury
  12. clip — for paper
  13. stock — shares
  14. fine — all right
  15. rule — a law
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. face — part of the head
  18. wound — past of 'wind'

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