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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 · patient · mine · scale · date · bowl · chest · stock

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. chest — of your body
  3. mine — for digging
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — certain
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. date — the fruit
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bound — obliged
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — goods
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — in music
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. bowl — a dish

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