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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 · bark · rule · bear · deal · chair

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. stock — goods
  5. rule — a law
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. deal — to handle
  14. bark — to shout
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. chair — a leader
  17. bear — the animal
  18. rule — government

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