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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. saw — the tool
  3. ground — crushed
  4. ground — a position
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bound — tied together
  7. cue — a hint
  8. stock — goods
  9. cue — a signal
  10. saw — the tool
  11. ground — the earth
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. clip — a video
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cue — for pool
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. clip — for paper
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. bound — obliged
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. bound — certain
  24. clip — to cut

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