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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: chair · tube · ground · court · track · cabinet · stock · temple

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. track — a path
  5. track — to keep track
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. ground — crushed
  9. court — of law
  10. track — a song
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. stock — goods
  13. court — for sport
  14. chair — a leader
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. tube — the underground
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. stock — shares
  21. ground — the earth
  22. tube — a container
  23. ground — a position
  24. court — of a king

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