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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: stock · bore · hide · stick · field · file · wake · branch

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. stock — goods
  5. file — a document
  6. wake — a trail
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. bore — to drill
  11. file — a line of people
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. file — a tool
  14. stock — shares
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. field — for sport
  18. branch — a division
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. field — farmland
  21. bore — to tire
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. field — a subject

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