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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. clip — a video
  3. stock — goods
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. mug — a cup
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. mug — to rob
  8. can — a tin
  9. can — a tin
  10. clip — to cut
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. current — electric
  14. stock — shares
  15. last — to go on
  16. current — happening now
  17. mug — a face
  18. current — of water
  19. can — to be able to
  20. clip — for paper
  21. last — finally
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pound — to hit hard

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