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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: snap · stock · clip · date · bound · tear · bulb · craft

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  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 — of a plant
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. bulb — for light
  4. stock — shares
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bound — tied together
  7. tear — from crying
  8. clip — a video
  9. craft — a skill
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bound — certain
  12. stock — goods
  13. craft — boats
  14. tear — to rip
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. bound — obliged
  17. clip — to cut
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. snap — to click
  20. date — the fruit
  21. clip — for paper
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. stock — a soup base
  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