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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 like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. craft — a skill
  4. clip — to cut
  5. land — a country
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. lean — thin
  8. firm — steady
  9. clip — for paper
  10. stock — shares
  11. craft — boats
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. firm — a company
  15. clip — a video
  16. stock — goods
  17. firm — decided
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. land — to come down
  20. bat — the animal
  21. lean — to bend
  22. land — ground
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. bat — in an idiom

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