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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. cue — a signal
  4. suit — to fit
  5. clip — to cut
  6. stock — shares
  7. spell — letters
  8. pitch — completely
  9. clip — a video
  10. cue — a hint
  11. suit — clothes
  12. cue — for pool
  13. stock — goods
  14. file — a tool
  15. spell — magic
  16. spell — a short time
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. suit — in cards
  20. clip — for paper
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a document

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