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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 120 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: bay · land · stock · clip · march · craft · hide · patient

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. clip — to cut
  3. land — to come down
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. land — a country
  6. march — the month
  7. clip — for paper
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. march — the month
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. land — ground
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. stock — goods
  18. craft — boats
  19. craft — a skill
  20. march — music
  21. clip — a video
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. craft — a handicraft

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