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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: stock · clip · bound · tube · snap · rush · rash · hide

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. tube — a container
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. clip — to cut
  6. rash — hasty
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. bound — tied together
  9. bound — certain
  10. clip — for paper
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. clip — a video
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. stock — shares
  18. rash — a series
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. rush — hurry
  21. stock — goods
  22. bound — obliged
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. snap — to click

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