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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. stock — goods
  3. suit — to fit
  4. game — wild animals
  5. tear — from crying
  6. charge — electricity
  7. mug — a cup
  8. mug — to rob
  9. band — a music group
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. clip — a video
  14. suit — clothes
  15. suit — in cards
  16. stock — shares
  17. clip — to cut
  18. band — a ring
  19. tear — from crying
  20. charge — in control
  21. tear — to rip
  22. mug — a face
  23. game — a match
  24. charge — a price

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