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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: face · bore · craft · march · clip · last · racket · stock

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bore — to drill
  3. march — the month
  4. clip — to cut
  5. stock — shares
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. face — to point toward
  10. last — finally
  11. craft — boats
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. march — the month
  15. last — final
  16. face — part of the head
  17. march — music
  18. craft — a skill
  19. clip — a video
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. face — to confront
  23. stock — goods
  24. clip — for paper

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