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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 116 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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — shares
  4. rock — a stone
  5. current — electric
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. clip — a video
  10. rock — music
  11. spell — letters
  12. spell — a short time
  13. stock — goods
  14. spell — magic
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. clip — to cut
  17. band — a music group
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bat — the animal
  20. current — happening now
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — to handle
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. current — of water

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