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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. stock — goods
  5. rule — government
  6. rule — a law
  7. rock — music
  8. bulb — for light
  9. pop — music
  10. pop — soda
  11. clip — for paper
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. pop — to visit
  14. bulb — for light
  15. clip — to cut
  16. rock — a stone
  17. kid — to tease
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chair — a leader
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. clip — a video
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — shares

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