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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. object — an aim
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. field — a subject
  5. wake — a trail
  6. scale — in music
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. stock — shares
  9. object — to protest
  10. scale — size or range
  11. content — happy
  12. content — the amount
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — a division
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. stock — goods
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. field — farmland
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bear — the animal
  23. object — a thing
  24. branch — of a tree

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