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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. stock — goods
  3. court — of a king
  4. spell — letters
  5. object — a thing
  6. court — for sport
  7. clip — for paper
  8. ball — a great time
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. clip — a video
  11. object — to protest
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. court — of law
  15. tube — a container
  16. spell — magic
  17. date — the fruit
  18. stock — shares
  19. ball — a dance
  20. tube — the underground
  21. object — an aim
  22. clip — to cut
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. date — on the calendar

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