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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. season — of the year
  3. clip — to cut
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. mark — a grade
  6. stock — shares
  7. stock — goods
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. tube — the underground
  10. tube — a container
  11. court — for sport
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. clip — a video
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. court — of law
  18. mark — a trace
  19. pass — a permit
  20. court — of a king
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. dip — to sink
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. season — in sport

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