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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: rest · bound · stock · track · game · craft · tear · spring

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. bound — certain
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rest — what's left
  6. track — a song
  7. game — wild animals
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. stock — goods
  10. bound — tied together
  11. rest — what's left
  12. track — a path
  13. track — to keep track
  14. craft — a skill
  15. spring — the season
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. game — a match
  20. bound — obliged
  21. spring — of water
  22. craft — boats
  23. spring — a coil
  24. rest — a break

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