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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: clip · land · ball · safe · face · stock · pass · tear

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — shares
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. pass — a permit
  6. tear — from crying
  7. land — ground
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. face — part of the head
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. tear — to rip
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — for paper
  16. tear — from crying
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. land — to come down
  19. ball — a great time
  20. face — to point toward
  21. clip — to cut
  22. land — a country
  23. face — to confront
  24. ball — a dance

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