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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. stock — goods
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. club — for dancing
  5. lie — to recline
  6. march — the month
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. file — a line of people
  9. stock — shares
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. file — a tool
  12. club — a group
  13. clip — to cut
  14. club — for golf
  15. march — the month
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. sharp — clever
  18. clip — a video
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. file — a document
  22. clip — for paper
  23. march — music
  24. sharp — exactly

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