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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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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: bound · kick · face · content · stock · race · stem · dip

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. race — humankind
  3. bound — certain
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. bound — obliged
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. stock — shares
  8. stem — to come from
  9. content — happy
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. face — part of the head
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. content — the amount
  15. race — the arms race
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. race — a contest
  18. face — to confront
  19. dip — to sink
  20. stock — goods
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. kick — in football
  23. face — to point toward
  24. stem — of a plant

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