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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: firm · cell · spell · stock · craft · race

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. craft — a skill
  3. craft — boats
  4. stock — shares
  5. race — humankind
  6. firm — steady
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — goods
  9. spell — a short time
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. firm — decided
  12. cell — a phone
  13. race — a contest
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. firm — a company
  16. race — the arms race
  17. spell — magic
  18. cell — in biology

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