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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. present — a gift
  3. clip — a video
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. present — there
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. mark — a trace
  8. clip — to cut
  9. current — of water
  10. present — the time now
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. perch — the fish
  13. current — electric
  14. stock — goods
  15. stock — shares
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. current — happening now
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. mark — a grade
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. coach — a trainer

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