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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. content — happy
  3. sharp — clever
  4. stock — shares
  5. pass — a permit
  6. clip — to cut
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. band — a ring
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. clip — for paper
  15. content — the amount
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. clip — a video
  20. stock — goods
  21. foot — a measure
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. band — a music group
  24. content — videos and posts

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