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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 116 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 · present · wound · mug · spring · board · clip · pitcher

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. board — to get on
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — to cut
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. clip — for paper
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. present — there
  11. stock — shares
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. present — the time now
  14. spring — of water
  15. mug — to rob
  16. wound — an injury
  17. present — a gift
  18. wound — an injury
  19. stock — goods
  20. mug — a cup
  21. mug — a face
  22. board — a committee
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. board — a flat piece

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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