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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 120 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: stock · chair · present · racket · face · kid · club · stand

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. present — a gift
  3. kid — to tease
  4. stock — goods
  5. face — to point toward
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. club — a group
  8. stock — shares
  9. present — the time now
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. stand — to bear
  13. chair — a leader
  14. face — to confront
  15. club — for dancing
  16. club — for golf
  17. present — there
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. face — part of the head
  22. kid — child
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. racket — for tennis

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