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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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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: stock · toast · bound · mouse · wind · clip · game · cabinet

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bound — certain
  4. clip — to cut
  5. toast — bread
  6. bound — obliged
  7. game — a match
  8. clip — for paper
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. wind — moving air
  12. stock — shares
  13. wind — moving air
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. stock — goods
  16. bound — tied together
  17. clip — a video
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. game — wild animals

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