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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 120 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: file · arm · track · stock · spring · patient · lean · clip

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. track — a path
  4. stock — goods
  5. clip — a video
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. file — a tool
  9. track — a song
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. lean — thin
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. clip — to cut
  17. track — to keep track
  18. clip — for paper
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. lean — to bend
  22. stock — shares
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — of water

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