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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. cue — for pool
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. cue — a hint
  6. stock — goods
  7. clip — for paper
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. tear — from crying
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. shower — rain
  13. shower — to wash
  14. clip — a video
  15. mine — for digging
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. cue — a signal
  18. tear — to rip
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. tear — from crying
  22. clip — to cut
  23. stock — shares
  24. toast — bread

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