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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: straw · hide · toast · fork · stock · file · clip · band

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. clip — a video
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. clip — to cut
  7. stock — goods
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. file — a line of people
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. stock — shares
  12. clip — for paper
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. toast — bread
  15. file — a document
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. fork — in a road
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. band — a music group
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. fork — to eat with

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