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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. stock — goods
  3. clip — to cut
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. clip — a video
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. tube — the underground
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. stock — shares
  12. prune — to trim
  13. tube — a container
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. clip — for paper
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — a match
  23. sharp — clever
  24. prune — to trim

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