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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 116 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: wake · field · wound · board · kid · bank · stock · chip

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bank — for money
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bank — of a river
  5. wake — a trail
  6. field — for sport
  7. wound — an injury
  8. board — a committee
  9. chip — to eat
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. kid — to tease
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. field — farmland
  16. kid — child
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. field — a subject
  19. board — to get on
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. chip — for betting
  22. stock — shares
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. stock — goods

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