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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: kick · track · craft · wound · stock · wind · court · press

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. track — a path
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. craft — a skill
  5. court — for sport
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. press — to push
  8. track — a song
  9. press — newspapers
  10. wound — an injury
  11. track — to keep track
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wind — moving air
  14. press — a publisher
  15. court — of law
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — in football
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. court — of a king
  20. wound — an injury
  21. craft — boats
  22. wind — moving air
  23. stock — goods
  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