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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: stick · stock · sharp · hand · face · craft · track · clip

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. clip — to cut
  3. face — part of the head
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. track — a path
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. stock — goods
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. craft — boats
  14. stock — shares
  15. hand — in cards
  16. face — to point toward
  17. face — to confront
  18. craft — a skill
  19. clip — for paper
  20. track — a song
  21. sharp — clever
  22. track — to keep track
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. clip — a video

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