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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. content — happy
  5. fall — to drop
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. stock — shares
  8. content — the amount
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — a video
  11. march — the month
  12. clip — to cut
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. capital — a city
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. fall — to drop
  18. stock — goods
  19. march — music
  20. capital — money
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. fall — the season
  23. rush — hurry
  24. march — the month

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