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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 120 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 · spring · field · leaves · drill · pound

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. field — for sport
  4. spring — the season
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. drill — army training
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. drill — the tool
  11. stock — goods
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. pound — a weight
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. drill — a practice
  17. stock — shares
  18. pound — to hit hard

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