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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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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 · race · plane · tear · calf · racket · fall · chest

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. race — humankind
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. stock — shares
  9. chest — a box
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. chest — of your body
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. chest — of your body
  16. race — a contest
  17. fall — the season
  18. race — the arms race
  19. tear — from crying
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. stock — goods
  22. plane — a tool
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. tear — to rip

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