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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: stock · sharp · bound · arm · tube · kick · field · race

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. stock — shares
  3. race — a contest
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. race — humankind
  6. stock — goods
  7. field — farmland
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bound — certain
  10. bound — obliged
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. bound — tied together
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. race — the arms race
  15. kick — in football
  16. field — for sport
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. tube — the underground
  19. field — a subject
  20. sharp — clever
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. tube — in a tire

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