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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: season · stock · rest · squash · object · kid · clip · kick

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. object — a thing
  3. squash — to crush
  4. object — to protest
  5. season — of the year
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. rest — what's left
  10. clip — to cut
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. squash — the sport
  16. kid — child
  17. rest — a break
  18. kick — in football
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. object — an aim
  23. rest — what's left
  24. stock — shares

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