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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: file · field · current · kid · spell · branch · chair · stock

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. current — electric
  4. branch — a division
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. field — for sport
  7. file — a tool
  8. stock — shares
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. spell — letters
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. current — happening now
  13. current — of water
  14. field — a subject
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. chair — a leader
  17. spell — magic
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — child
  20. spell — a short time
  21. file — a line of people
  22. kid — to tease
  23. field — farmland
  24. file — a document

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