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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: field · march · stock · kid · trunk · plane · cabinet · chip

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. march — music
  3. stock — shares
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. chip — for betting
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. kid — to tease
  10. plane — a tool
  11. field — farmland
  12. stock — goods
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. chip — to eat
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. field — for sport
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. field — a subject
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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