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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: date · suit · ground · stock · bark · can · field · key

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. can — a tin
  4. suit — in cards
  5. key — for a lock
  6. ground — the earth
  7. key — in music
  8. key — the most important part
  9. stock — goods
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. field — for sport
  15. can — to be able to
  16. field — farmland
  17. bark — to shout
  18. can — a tin
  19. ground — a position
  20. suit — to fit
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. suit — clothes
  23. date — the fruit
  24. stock — shares

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