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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. stock — shares
  4. present — the time now
  5. fork — in a road
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — to tease
  8. file — a line of people
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. file — a tool
  11. key — in music
  12. clip — a video
  13. file — a document
  14. stock — goods
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. dip — to sink
  17. clip — to cut
  18. present — a gift
  19. clip — for paper
  20. key — for a lock
  21. key — the most important part
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. present — there

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