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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: content · kid · track · patient · season · chest · bear · stock

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a song
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. stock — shares
  7. content — happy
  8. kid — to tease
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. season — of the year
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. kid — child
  16. track — a path
  17. content — the amount
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. chest — a box
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bear — the animal
  23. stock — goods
  24. season — in sport

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