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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 116 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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. clip — a video
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. stock — shares
  5. bear — the animal
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. staff — employees
  8. squash — to crush
  9. degree — from a university
  10. lean — to bend
  11. staff — a stick
  12. stock — goods
  13. squash — the sport
  14. clip — for paper
  15. degree — temperature
  16. lean — thin
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cue — a hint
  22. cue — for pool
  23. degree — an amount
  24. cue — a signal

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