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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: date · net · arm · stock · coach · drill · bat · fork

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. date — the fruit
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. fork — in a road
  7. bat — the animal
  8. net — after costs
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — a practice
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. net — for catching
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. net — in sport
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. stock — goods
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. date — on the calendar

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