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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: chest · present · pop · fan · cabinet · coach · clip · stock

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pop — music
  3. stock — goods
  4. pop — to visit
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. stock — shares
  7. chest — of your body
  8. clip — a video
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. present — the time now
  11. chest — of your body
  12. present — there
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. present — a gift
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pop — soda
  19. chest — a box
  20. clip — to cut
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. fan — a supporter

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