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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: wound · charge · stock · race · file · land · court · mouse

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. stock — shares
  3. land — to come down
  4. wound — an injury
  5. race — a contest
  6. file — a document
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. file — a line of people
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. race — humankind
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. land — a country
  13. wound — an injury
  14. file — a tool
  15. court — of a king
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. court — for sport
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. race — the arms race
  20. court — of law
  21. land — ground
  22. charge — electricity
  23. charge — a price
  24. stock — goods

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