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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. last — final
  5. last — to go on
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. clip — to cut
  9. rock — a stone
  10. rock — music
  11. present — there
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. present — a gift
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. stock — shares
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — to be able to
  19. can — a tin
  20. clip — a video
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. stock — goods
  24. present — the time now

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