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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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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: band · bank · clip · present · stock · spring · suit · craft

  1. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. stock — shares
  3. bank — for money
  4. spring — of water
  5. present — there
  6. clip — to cut
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. band — a music group
  9. stock — goods
  10. present — the time now
  11. suit — to fit
  12. clip — for paper
  13. spring — the season
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bank — for money
  17. present — a gift
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. clip — a video
  20. band — a ring
  21. craft — boats
  22. bank — of a river
  23. suit — clothes
  24. spring — a coil

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