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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. clip — for paper
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. stock — shares
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — a video
  11. lean — thin
  12. press — to push
  13. lean — to bend
  14. net — after costs
  15. press — newspapers
  16. wound — an injury
  17. net — in sport
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. stock — goods
  20. net — for catching
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. press — a publisher
  24. mouse — the animal

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