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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 120 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 · sharp · bound · field · wake · bank · fork · content

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. fork — in a road
  3. bank — for money
  4. sharp — clever
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. bank — for money
  7. stock — shares
  8. content — the amount
  9. content — happy
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bank — of a river
  13. field — for sport
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. field — a subject
  17. bound — certain
  18. stock — goods
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. bound — tied together
  21. wake — a trail
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. field — farmland
  24. sharp — exactly

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