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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. game — wild animals
  3. stock — goods
  4. drill — the tool
  5. clip — to cut
  6. drill — a practice
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. game — a match
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. mark — a trace
  14. bear — the animal
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. mark — a grade
  17. clip — for paper
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. stock — shares
  21. dip — to sink
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. drill — army training
  24. clip — a video

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