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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: stock · net · bore · wind · racket · race · wound · march

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. race — a contest
  5. race — humankind
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. net — for catching
  8. wind — moving air
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. wound — an injury
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. march — the month
  14. bore — to drill
  15. net — in sport
  16. race — the arms race
  17. net — after costs
  18. march — music
  19. stock — goods
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stock — shares
  22. bore — to tire
  23. wound — an injury
  24. march — the month

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