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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  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. bat — in an idiom
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. clip — a video
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. bat — the animal
  7. club — for golf
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. march — the month
  10. stock — goods
  11. tube — a container
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. clip — for paper
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. march — the month
  18. club — for dancing
  19. stock — shares
  20. tube — the underground
  21. club — a group
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. march — music
  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