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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: cell · clip · charge · fork · straw · stock · stick · field

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. stock — goods
  3. fork — in a road
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. cell — a phone
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. field — for sport
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. charge — in control
  11. clip — to cut
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. clip — a video
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. charge — electricity
  19. stock — shares
  20. field — farmland
  21. cell — in biology
  22. clip — for paper
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. charge — a price

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