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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 120 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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. land — ground
  3. rock — a stone
  4. key — in music
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. clip — to cut
  7. land — to come down
  8. rock — music
  9. bore — to drill
  10. land — a country
  11. clip — for paper
  12. key — the most important part
  13. clip — a video
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. key — for a lock
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. stock — goods
  23. mine — for digging
  24. bore — to tire

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