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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. stock — goods
  3. mate — a friend
  4. face — part of the head
  5. face — to point toward
  6. mark — a trace
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. race — the arms race
  9. mate — a partner
  10. race — a contest
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. race — humankind
  14. face — to confront
  15. mate — to breed
  16. clip — for paper
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. chair — a leader
  20. clip — a video
  21. branch — a division
  22. mark — a grade
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. clip — to cut

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