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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 · band · wave · chest · fan · bark · race · wake

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — goods
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. band — a music group
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wake — a trail
  9. band — a ring
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. race — humankind
  12. bark — to shout
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — of your body
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. race — a contest
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. stock — shares

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