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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 · pop · mouse · jam · spell · bound · chest · clip

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. chest — of your body
  3. spell — magic
  4. pop — music
  5. stock — shares
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. bound — tied together
  11. pop — to visit
  12. stock — goods
  13. pop — soda
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. bound — certain
  18. clip — to cut
  19. chest — a box
  20. clip — for paper
  21. spell — a short time
  22. clip — a video
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. spell — letters

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