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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: ground · foot · rash · trunk · race · stock · hand · fine

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. fine — all right
  3. race — a contest
  4. fine — high quality
  5. foot — a measure
  6. ground — crushed
  7. race — humankind
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. rash — a series
  10. ground — the earth
  11. stock — shares
  12. stock — goods
  13. hand — in cards
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. rash — hasty
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. race — the arms race
  22. hand — help
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. trunk — of a tree

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