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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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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: key · bark · nail · roll · stock · bore · lash · clip

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. clip — a video
  3. key — in music
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. stock — goods
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. clip — for paper
  9. stock — shares
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. roll — a list
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. roll — a cake
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. bore — to drill
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bore — to tire
  23. key — for a lock
  24. bark — of a tree

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