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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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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 · wound · fork · pitch · mark · tear · lash · branch

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. branch — a division
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. stock — goods
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. pitch — completely
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. wound — an injury
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. wound — an injury
  20. mark — a trace
  21. stock — shares
  22. mark — a grade
  23. fork — in a road
  24. fork — to eat with

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