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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 120 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 · lean · temple · mine · wound · net · saw · craft

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. net — for catching
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wound — an injury
  5. lean — to bend
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. saw — the tool
  9. craft — boats
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. lean — thin
  14. net — after costs
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. net — in sport
  17. craft — a skill
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. wound — an injury
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. stock — shares
  23. saw — the tool
  24. stock — goods

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