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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cabinet · bear · ball · game · staff · stock · squash · clip

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. stock — shares
  3. game — a match
  4. clip — a video
  5. stock — goods
  6. game — wild animals
  7. staff — employees
  8. bear — the animal
  9. staff — a stick
  10. squash — to crush
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. clip — to cut
  17. squash — the sport
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. bear — the animal
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ball — a great time
  24. staff — employees

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