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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: bound · last · root · fan · stock · ground · chest · wound

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. root — of a word
  5. ground — the earth
  6. last — final
  7. bound — certain
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. last — finally
  10. wound — an injury
  11. ground — crushed
  12. root — the cause
  13. ground — a position
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. bound — obliged
  16. root — of a plant
  17. stock — goods
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bound — tied together
  20. stock — shares
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. chest — a box
  24. last — to go on

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