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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 120 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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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: mate · ground · bore · racket · deal · stock · clip · sharp

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — shares
  4. deal — to handle
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bore — to tire
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. clip — for paper
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. ground — the earth
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mate — a partner
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — a video
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. mate — to breed
  21. ground — crushed
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bore — to drill

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