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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. drill — the tool
  3. clip — to cut
  4. object — an aim
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. drill — a practice
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. capital — a city
  9. roll — a list
  10. roll — a cake
  11. object — a thing
  12. stock — goods
  13. capital — money
  14. object — to protest
  15. suit — in cards
  16. stock — shares
  17. squash — to crush
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. clip — a video
  20. suit — clothes
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. drill — army training
  24. suit — to fit

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