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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. stock — goods
  3. band — a music group
  4. clip — a video
  5. rest — a break
  6. rest — what's left
  7. track — to keep track
  8. rest — what's left
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. track — a path
  11. file — a tool
  12. clip — for paper
  13. band — a ring
  14. clip — to cut
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. file — a line of people
  17. stock — shares
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. bore — to drill
  20. track — a song
  21. file — a document
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. bore — to tire
  24. deal — a big deal

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