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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: straw · stock · stem · bark · face · net · file · track

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. bark — to shout
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — to come from
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. track — to keep track
  9. net — after costs
  10. face — part of the head
  11. net — for catching
  12. file — a line of people
  13. face — to point toward
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. stock — shares
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. file — a tool
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. stock — goods
  20. face — to confront
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. track — a path
  23. track — a song
  24. net — in sport

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