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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 · lie · march · wax · branch · face · current · clip

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. clip — for paper
  3. stock — shares
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. current — of water
  6. march — the month
  7. stock — goods
  8. face — to confront
  9. march — music
  10. branch — a division
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. current — happening now
  13. face — part of the head
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. current — electric
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. face — to point toward
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. clip — to cut
  20. lie — to recline
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. wax — to grow
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. clip — a video

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