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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 · band · bay · face · sharp · net · file · stem

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. file — a line of people
  3. face — part of the head
  4. stock — shares
  5. file — a tool
  6. stem — to come from
  7. face — to confront
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. band — a ring
  11. net — in sport
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. net — for catching
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. face — to point toward
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. sharp — clever
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. band — a music group
  23. stock — goods
  24. file — a document

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