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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: fork · stock · sharp · chip · bore · clip · capital · wound

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. bore — to drill
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. clip — for paper
  8. capital — money
  9. stock — shares
  10. clip — a video
  11. fork — in a road
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. stock — goods
  16. wound — an injury
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. sharp — clever
  19. clip — to cut
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. bore — to tire
  22. capital — a city
  23. chip — for betting
  24. chip — to eat

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