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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 · foot · fan · last · craft · bulb · wound · clip

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. clip — a video
  3. stock — shares
  4. craft — a skill
  5. wound — an injury
  6. clip — to cut
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. craft — boats
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. bulb — for light
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. last — to go on
  17. stock — goods
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. last — final
  20. last — finally
  21. foot — a measure
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. clip — for paper
  24. craft — a handicraft

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