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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. clip — a video
  3. stock — shares
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. can — to be able to
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. clip — to cut
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. can — a tin
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. pound — a weight
  15. can — a tin
  16. mine — for digging
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. kick — in football
  19. clip — for paper
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. stock — goods
  24. nail — for a hammer

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