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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: stock · bass · saw · face · chest · ground · nail · file

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. stock — goods
  3. saw — the tool
  4. file — a document
  5. chest — a box
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. stock — shares
  9. face — part of the head
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. file — a line of people
  12. face — to confront
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. ground — crushed
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. bass — low music
  18. ground — a position
  19. file — a tool
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chest — of your body
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. ground — the earth
  24. face — to point toward

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