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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. bank — for money
  4. cell — a phone
  5. clip — to cut
  6. cell — in biology
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stock — shares
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. swing — to play on
  11. row — a line
  12. swing — in golf
  13. swing — music
  14. bank — for money
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. suit — clothes
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. row — to paddle
  20. suit — to fit
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. bank — of a river
  23. suit — in cards
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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