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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: plane · trunk · stock · row · rule · key · file · foot

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. key — for a lock
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. key — the most important part
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. file — a document
  7. rule — a law
  8. row — to paddle
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. plane — a tool
  11. rule — government
  12. file — a tool
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. row — a line
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. stock — shares
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. key — in music
  19. stock — goods
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. file — a line of people
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. foot — a measure
  24. trunk — of a tree

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