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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. clip — to cut
  4. march — the month
  5. foot — a measure
  6. snap — to click
  7. march — music
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. track — a path
  11. clip — a video
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. march — the month
  14. drill — a practice
  15. plane — a tool
  16. stock — shares
  17. drill — the tool
  18. track — to keep track
  19. clip — for paper
  20. track — a song
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. stock — goods
  24. drill — army training

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