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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: stock · bear · can · date · straw · clip · jam · capital

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. clip — to cut
  7. can — a tin
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. stock — shares
  10. clip — for paper
  11. can — to be able to
  12. can — a tin
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. stock — goods
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — the animal
  17. date — the fruit
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. clip — a video
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. date — on the calendar

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