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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: bay · net · last · stock · bat · craft

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. stock — goods
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. last — to go on
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. net — for catching
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. craft — a skill
  10. last — final
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. craft — boats
  13. net — in sport
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. stock — shares
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bat — the animal
  18. net — after costs

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