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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 116 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. spell — a short time
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. fine — high quality
  6. ball — a great time
  7. wake — a trail
  8. clip — a video
  9. stock — goods
  10. clip — for paper
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — letters
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. stock — shares
  17. fine — all right
  18. clip — to cut
  19. ball — a dance
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. fine — a penalty

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