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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: fork · wound · craft · capital · stock · current · sharp · wind

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. current — electric
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. capital — money
  5. current — of water
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. stock — goods
  9. wind — moving air
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. craft — a skill
  12. wound — an injury
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. current — happening now
  15. capital — a city
  16. sharp — clever
  17. craft — boats
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. fork — in a road
  23. wound — an injury
  24. sharp — exactly

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