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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 116 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: chair · fine · stock · bark · ground · coach · mouse · race

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. fine — high quality
  4. race — the arms race
  5. ground — crushed
  6. chair — a leader
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. ground — a position
  9. stock — shares
  10. fine — all right
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. stock — goods
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. race — humankind
  20. race — a contest
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. ground — the earth
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. chair — a professorship

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