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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. tear — from crying
  3. craft — a skill
  4. stock — goods
  5. date — the fruit
  6. key — in music
  7. stock — shares
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. tear — from crying
  11. snap — to click
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. key — for a lock
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. toast — bread
  17. key — the most important part
  18. clip — to cut
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. craft — boats
  21. clip — a video
  22. tear — to rip
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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