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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: bound · race · stock · foot · ground · club · squash · tube

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. bound — certain
  3. club — for golf
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. tube — a container
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. race — the arms race
  9. stock — shares
  10. race — a contest
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. squash — the sport
  13. tube — the underground
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — a position
  16. bound — tied together
  17. ground — the earth
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. squash — to crush
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. race — humankind
  22. bound — obliged
  23. club — for dancing
  24. club — a group

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