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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 · chest · ground · stick · race · key

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. chest — of your body
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. key — for a lock
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — a position
  8. race — humankind
  9. chest — of your body
  10. race — a contest
  11. key — in music
  12. chest — a box
  13. race — the arms race
  14. ground — crushed
  15. stock — shares
  16. key — the most important part
  17. stock — goods
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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