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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 120 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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. clip — to cut
  4. stock — shares
  5. can — a tin
  6. track — to keep track
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — from a university
  9. staff — employees
  10. game — wild animals
  11. clip — a video
  12. degree — temperature
  13. can — to be able to
  14. stock — goods
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. track — a song
  17. game — a match
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. staff — a stick
  20. can — a tin
  21. pass — a permit
  22. staff — employees
  23. track — a path
  24. stock — a soup base

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