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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. clip — to cut
  3. stock — goods
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. spell — a short time
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a document
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. spell — letters
  12. track — a song
  13. clip — a video
  14. track — to keep track
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. spell — magic
  17. saw — the tool
  18. track — a path
  19. clip — for paper
  20. foot — a measure
  21. file — a line of people
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. saw — the tool

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