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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: trunk · stock · lean · sharp · hand · season · fan · spell

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. season — in sport
  3. stock — goods
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. spell — letters
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. spell — a short time
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. season — of the year
  16. lean — thin
  17. hand — in cards
  18. sharp — clever
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. spell — magic
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. lean — to bend
  24. stock — shares

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