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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: stand · lean · tear · vault · clip · stock

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. lean — thin
  3. tear — to rip
  4. lean — to bend
  5. clip — for paper
  6. tear — from crying
  7. stand — to bear
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. clip — to cut
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. stock — goods
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. stock — shares
  16. clip — a video
  17. vault — a safe
  18. tear — from crying

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