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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: branch · land · stock · hand · snap · net · calf · craft

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. stock — goods
  3. land — ground
  4. branch — a division
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — in cards
  7. net — in sport
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. land — a country
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. net — for catching
  16. craft — a skill
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. stock — shares
  19. craft — boats
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. net — after costs
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. snap — to click
  24. branch — of a bank

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