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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. fall — the season
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. drill — army training
  5. degree — from a university
  6. drill — a practice
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. stock — goods
  9. clip — for paper
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. clip — a video
  12. mate — a partner
  13. dip — to sink
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mate — a friend
  17. degree — temperature
  18. drill — the tool
  19. clip — to cut
  20. stock — shares
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. degree — an amount

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