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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. tear — from crying
  3. clip — a video
  4. snap — to click
  5. tear — to rip
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. clip — to cut
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stock — shares
  13. stock — goods
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. clip — for paper
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. squash — to crush
  20. perch — the fish
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. squash — the sport
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pound — to hit hard

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