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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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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: sharp · band · rule · clip · stock · charge · degree · craft

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. charge — in control
  6. degree — temperature
  7. band — a ring
  8. rule — a law
  9. degree — from a university
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. craft — boats
  14. band — a music group
  15. craft — a skill
  16. clip — a video
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. clip — to cut
  20. clip — for paper
  21. rule — government
  22. stock — goods
  23. charge — electricity
  24. stock — shares

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