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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: field · kick · cabinet · bark · bound · stock · chest · charge

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. chest — of your body
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. field — a subject
  5. charge — a price
  6. kick — in football
  7. field — farmland
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. charge — electricity
  10. bound — certain
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bark — to shout
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. chest — a box
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bound — obliged
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. stock — goods
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. field — for sport
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. bound — tied together
  24. charge — in control

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