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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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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: bore · face · dip · spell · race · kid · stock · patient

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. spell — magic
  3. face — part of the head
  4. kid — child
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. dip — to sink
  11. face — to point toward
  12. face — to confront
  13. bore — to drill
  14. spell — a short time
  15. race — humankind
  16. stock — goods
  17. kid — to tease
  18. spell — letters
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. race — a contest
  22. bore — to tire
  23. race — the arms race
  24. stock — a soup base

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