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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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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: chair · stock · foot · present · wind · sharp · fall · nail

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. stock — goods
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. present — a gift
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. wind — moving air
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. fall — to drop
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. wind — moving air
  13. chair — a leader
  14. present — there
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. fall — to drop
  19. foot — a measure
  20. stock — shares
  21. fall — the season
  22. present — the time now
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. nail — for a hammer

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