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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. clip — to cut
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. bound — tied together
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. row — a line
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. present — the time now
  11. present — a gift
  12. bound — obliged
  13. present — there
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stock — goods
  16. hand — help
  17. row — to paddle
  18. clip — for paper
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. bound — certain
  22. hand — in cards
  23. stock — shares
  24. clip — a video

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