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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 120 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: bark · land · hide · mine · game · stock · firm · spell

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. spell — a short time
  3. land — a country
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bark — to shout
  6. mine — for digging
  7. game — wild animals
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. firm — decided
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. spell — letters
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. land — ground
  17. spell — magic
  18. firm — steady
  19. stock — shares
  20. land — to come down
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. firm — a company
  24. game — a match

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