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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. last — finally
  5. staff — employees
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. net — in sport
  8. net — for catching
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — to cut
  12. stock — goods
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. clip — for paper
  15. chip — for betting
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. chip — to eat
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. stock — shares
  20. staff — employees
  21. net — after costs
  22. last — to go on
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. last — final

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