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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: cue · craft · stock · tear · wind · spell · vault · field

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cue — for pool
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. wind — moving air
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. cue — a signal
  8. spell — magic
  9. tear — from crying
  10. craft — boats
  11. field — a subject
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. vault — a safe
  14. craft — a skill
  15. spell — letters
  16. wind — moving air
  17. spell — a short time
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. cue — a hint
  20. field — for sport
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. tear — to rip
  23. field — farmland
  24. stock — shares

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