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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: stock · cell · spring · date · fork · nail · pass · field

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — shares
  4. field — for sport
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cell — a phone
  9. spring — a coil
  10. date — the fruit
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. spring — the season
  13. cell — in biology
  14. field — farmland
  15. field — a subject
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. spring — of water
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. fork — in a road

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