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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. clip — a video
  3. ball — a dance
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. stock — shares
  7. key — for a lock
  8. game — wild animals
  9. clip — to cut
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. key — in music
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. sharp — clever
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. key — the most important part
  19. stock — goods
  20. game — a match
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. clip — for paper
  23. ball — a great time
  24. nail — for a hammer

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