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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.

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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: last · row · clip · spell · firm · stock · bat · fan

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. row — to paddle
  4. firm — decided
  5. firm — steady
  6. row — a line
  7. clip — to cut
  8. stock — shares
  9. spell — letters
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — for paper
  13. stock — goods
  14. last — final
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — a short time
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — the animal
  23. last — finally
  24. last — to go on

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