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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 116 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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rest — a break
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bank — of a river
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bank — for money
  8. ground — the earth
  9. spell — letters
  10. file — a document
  11. bank — for money
  12. spell — magic
  13. ground — crushed
  14. file — a line of people
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. stock — goods
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. rest — what's left
  19. stock — shares
  20. rest — what's left
  21. clip — a video
  22. file — a tool
  23. ground — a position
  24. spell — a short time

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