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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: stock · toast · racket · wind · march · field

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. field — farmland
  4. stock — shares
  5. march — the month
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. march — the month
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. field — for sport
  12. toast — bread
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. march — music
  17. field — a subject
  18. stock — goods

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