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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 120 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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — to trim
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. spring — a coil
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. bass — low music
  10. clip — a video
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. tube — the underground
  13. stock — goods
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. lean — to bend
  16. lean — thin
  17. rush — hurry
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bass — the fish
  20. tube — a container
  21. spring — the season
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. spring — of water
  24. clip — to cut

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