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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: fine · tube · stock · face · stem · ground · vault · court

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. stock — shares
  3. tube — a container
  4. court — of law
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — to point toward
  8. fine — high quality
  9. vault — a safe
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. ground — a position
  12. tube — the underground
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. court — for sport
  15. face — part of the head
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. stem — to come from
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. court — of a king
  21. stock — goods
  22. ground — the earth
  23. ground — crushed
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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