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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: shower · stock · sharp · track · kick · present · fine · clip

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. shower — rain
  6. present — the time now
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. present — there
  9. fine — high quality
  10. fine — all right
  11. shower — to wash
  12. clip — a video
  13. track — a song
  14. clip — to cut
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. sharp — clever
  17. track — a path
  18. stock — goods
  19. track — to keep track
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. clip — for paper
  23. present — a gift
  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