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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: swing · file · rash · stock · clip · can · straw · object

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — goods
  4. rash — a series
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. object — to protest
  8. stock — shares
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. can — to be able to
  11. swing — to play on
  12. object — an aim
  13. object — a thing
  14. rash — hasty
  15. can — a tin
  16. clip — a video
  17. file — a line of people
  18. can — a tin
  19. swing — music
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. swing — in golf
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. file — a document

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