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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: stem · board · stock · sharp · kick · row · chest · land

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. land — a country
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. chest — of your body
  7. kick — in football
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. stock — goods
  10. board — a committee
  11. row — to paddle
  12. stem — to come from
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. land — to come down
  15. chest — a box
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. row — a line
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. land — ground
  20. sharp — clever
  21. board — to get on
  22. stock — shares
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. chest — of your body

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