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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: kick · band · fork · staff · land · object · bat · stock

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. land — a country
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. land — to come down
  6. stock — goods
  7. kick — in football
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. land — ground
  15. fork — in a road
  16. stock — shares
  17. band — a ring
  18. object — a thing
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. band — a music group
  22. object — to protest
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. object — an aim

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