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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: lean · stock · bowl · mark · date · clip · file · roll

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. roll — a cake
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. lean — to bend
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. mark — a grade
  7. stock — shares
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. clip — a video
  10. file — a line of people
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. stock — goods
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. clip — to cut
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. lean — thin
  23. mark — a trace
  24. date — the fruit

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