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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: net · season · stock · trunk · face · snap · race · bound

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. bound — obliged
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. net — for catching
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. race — humankind
  10. snap — to click
  11. race — the arms race
  12. face — to confront
  13. net — in sport
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — goods
  16. season — of the year
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. face — part of the head
  19. net — after costs
  20. race — a contest
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. face — to point toward
  23. bound — tied together
  24. season — in sport

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