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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. clip — a video
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. clip — for paper
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. season — of the year
  9. dip — to sink
  10. bound — obliged
  11. season — in sport
  12. clip — to cut
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bound — tied together
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. stock — goods
  19. chest — a box
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. root — of a word
  22. root — the cause
  23. bound — certain
  24. root — of a plant

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