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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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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: club · stock · wound · object · trunk · mark · fine · court

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. stock — goods
  3. club — for golf
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. object — to protest
  8. mark — a trace
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. club — for dancing
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. club — a group
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. object — a thing
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. stock — shares
  20. wound — an injury
  21. mark — a grade
  22. wound — an injury
  23. object — an aim
  24. fine — all right

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