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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. staff — employees
  3. face — to confront
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — shares
  6. swing — music
  7. clip — a video
  8. cell — a phone
  9. clip — for paper
  10. squash — the sport
  11. swing — to play on
  12. staff — a stick
  13. face — to point toward
  14. cell — in biology
  15. squash — to crush
  16. kick — in football
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. staff — employees
  19. clip — to cut
  20. swing — in golf
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. face — part of the head
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. squash — the vegetable

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