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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. pound — a weight
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. vault — a safe
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. clip — to cut
  14. land — to come down
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. clip — a video
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. stock — goods
  21. land — ground
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. clip — for paper
  24. land — a country

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