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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 124 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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. fine — high quality
  3. clip — a video
  4. prune — to trim
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. prune — to trim
  7. dip — to sink
  8. drill — army training
  9. clip — to cut
  10. court — of a king
  11. drill — the tool
  12. stock — goods
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. fine — all right
  16. court — for sport
  17. stock — shares
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. court — of law
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. drill — a practice
  23. clip — for paper
  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