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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: stock · ground · wake · craft · press · land · chest · fan

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. stock — shares
  3. ground — the earth
  4. chest — a box
  5. craft — boats
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. craft — a skill
  8. ground — crushed
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. ground — a position
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. stock — goods
  14. press — to push
  15. land — a country
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. press — newspapers
  19. land — to come down
  20. land — ground
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. press — a publisher
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. wake — a trail

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