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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. clip — to cut
  3. mate — a friend
  4. cap — a lid
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. clip — for paper
  7. shower — to wash
  8. stock — goods
  9. track — a song
  10. stock — shares
  11. clip — a video
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. cap — a hat
  17. track — a path
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. mate — a partner
  21. track — to keep track
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. shower — rain
  24. cap — of ice

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