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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: content · stand · stock · race · craft · kid

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. content — happy
  4. stand — to bear
  5. kid — to tease
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. race — a contest
  8. craft — boats
  9. stock — shares
  10. race — humankind
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. stock — goods
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. race — the arms race
  15. kid — child
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. content — the amount
  18. craft — a skill

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