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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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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: safe · degree · stick · rule · stock · field · cold · bear

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. stock — shares
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. stock — goods
  5. field — for sport
  6. degree — from a university
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. bear — the animal
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bear — the animal
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cold — not warm
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. rule — a law
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — a subject
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. degree — an amount
  24. bear — to put up with

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