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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: bound · date · leaves · race · stock · cabinet · craft · field

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. field — a subject
  3. race — the arms race
  4. craft — a skill
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. stock — goods
  7. date — the fruit
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. bound — obliged
  13. race — humankind
  14. field — farmland
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. field — for sport
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — tied together
  19. craft — boats
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. race — a contest
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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