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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. stock — shares
  5. snap — to click
  6. march — the month
  7. stem — to come from
  8. object — to protest
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. march — the month
  12. perch — the fish
  13. clip — a video
  14. march — music
  15. board — to get on
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. board — a committee
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. object — an aim
  22. clip — for paper
  23. object — a thing
  24. clip — to cut

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