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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: object · temple · nail · row · last · spell · clip · stock

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. spell — a short time
  3. object — a thing
  4. last — final
  5. clip — to cut
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. object — to protest
  8. last — finally
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. spell — letters
  11. row — to paddle
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. object — an aim
  14. spell — magic
  15. clip — for paper
  16. row — a line
  17. last — to go on
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. clip — a video
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. stock — shares
  24. temple — a place of worship

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