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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: stock · prune · stem · bound · rash · kid · chest · ground

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — tied together
  5. chest — of your body
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stock — shares
  8. ground — crushed
  9. chest — a box
  10. ground — a position
  11. rash — hasty
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. rash — a series
  15. kid — to tease
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. ground — the earth
  18. chest — of your body
  19. kid — child
  20. bound — obliged
  21. stock — goods
  22. stem — to come from
  23. prune — to trim
  24. stock — a soup base

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