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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. clip — to cut
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. foot — a measure
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. rash — a series
  8. spring — the season
  9. craft — a skill
  10. spring — a coil
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. stock — shares
  13. craft — boats
  14. stock — goods
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. rash — hasty
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. spring — of water
  24. craft — a handicraft

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