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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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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: stock · race · toast · wake · pound · rest · nail · field

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. rest — what's left
  3. stock — goods
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. race — humankind
  6. race — the arms race
  7. toast — bread
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. rest — a break
  11. field — farmland
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. race — a contest
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — a weight
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. rest — what's left
  19. field — a subject
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. field — for sport
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. wake — a trail

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