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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 116 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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. pop — music
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. stock — shares
  5. race — humankind
  6. stock — goods
  7. clip — for paper
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. race — the arms race
  12. clip — to cut
  13. rash — hasty
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bass — the fish
  16. race — a contest
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. pop — soda
  19. plane — a tool
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. bass — low music
  23. clip — a video
  24. bass — the instrument

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