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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. board — to get on
  3. board — a committee
  4. hand — in cards
  5. drill — army training
  6. hand — help
  7. stock — goods
  8. clip — a video
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. press — newspapers
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. drill — the tool
  17. stem — to come from
  18. drill — a practice
  19. clip — for paper
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. press — to push
  22. press — a publisher
  23. stock — shares
  24. stock — a soup base

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