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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. squash — to crush
  3. stock — shares
  4. staff — employees
  5. rock — a stone
  6. clip — a video
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. staff — employees
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. pass — a permit
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. clip — for paper
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. staff — a stick
  15. bat — the animal
  16. rock — music
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. clip — to cut
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. squash — the sport
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. rock — to move gently

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