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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: present · stock · firm · bear · tear · file

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. stock — shares
  3. firm — steady
  4. tear — to rip
  5. firm — a company
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — the time now
  8. file — a tool
  9. bear — the animal
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bear — the animal
  12. file — a document
  13. firm — decided
  14. stock — goods
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. file — a line of people
  17. present — there
  18. stock — a soup base

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