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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: swing · shower · bound · race · tube · stock · patient · wound

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. wound — an injury
  3. race — a contest
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. swing — to play on
  6. shower — rain
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wound — an injury
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bound — obliged
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — music
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. shower — to wash
  18. bound — tied together
  19. tube — a container
  20. bound — certain
  21. tube — the underground
  22. stock — goods
  23. race — humankind
  24. patient — a sick person

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