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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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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 · stand · stock · vault · mark · net · field · tear

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. net — after costs
  6. stand — to bear
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. vault — a safe
  9. tear — from crying
  10. field — farmland
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. mark — a grade
  13. tear — to rip
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — for catching
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. mark — a trace
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. stock — shares
  22. chair — a leader
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. tear — from crying

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