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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 116 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 · fan · net · spring · lean · leaves · swing · clip

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. lean — thin
  4. lean — to bend
  5. stock — shares
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. swing — in golf
  9. clip — to cut
  10. swing — music
  11. spring — a coil
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. net — after costs
  14. clip — for paper
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — of water
  20. stock — goods
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. clip — a video
  23. net — for catching
  24. swing — to play on

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