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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. stock — goods
  3. march — music
  4. snap — to click
  5. mug — a face
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. mug — to rob
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — a video
  10. capital — money
  11. clip — for paper
  12. object — an aim
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. capital — a city
  15. object — to protest
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. march — the month
  20. stock — shares
  21. march — the month
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. mug — a cup
  24. object — a thing

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