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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. kid — to tease
  3. scale — in music
  4. bore — to drill
  5. kid — child
  6. scale — size or range
  7. clip — a video
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. stock — shares
  10. ball — a dance
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. bore — to tire
  15. ball — a great time
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. clip — for paper
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. clip — to cut
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. racket — a loud noise

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