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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: date · rush · bear · game · field · mark · tear · stock

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — a subject
  3. tear — from crying
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. tear — to rip
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. date — the fruit
  9. bear — the animal
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. tear — from crying
  12. stock — goods
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rush — hurry
  15. mark — a trace
  16. field — for sport
  17. bear — the animal
  18. stock — shares
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. mark — a grade
  22. game — a match
  23. game — wild animals
  24. rush — a thrill

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