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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: file · sharp · trunk · stock · shower · object · mine · patient

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. shower — rain
  6. stock — goods
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. stock — shares
  10. file — a line of people
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. file — a document
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. sharp — clever
  16. object — a thing
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. object — an aim
  19. object — to protest
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. file — a tool
  23. shower — to wash
  24. mine — for digging

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