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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: cabinet · land · temple · stock · rule · bear · field · foot

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. stock — shares
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. rule — government
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bear — the animal
  7. field — farmland
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. land — a country
  10. bear — the animal
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. field — for sport
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. field — a subject
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. land — ground
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. foot — a measure
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. land — to come down
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. stock — goods
  24. rule — a law

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