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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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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: fork · cabinet · chair · kick · march · stock · pound · fall

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. fall — to drop
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. march — the month
  8. stock — shares
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. fall — to drop
  12. pound — a weight
  13. march — the month
  14. stock — goods
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. kick — in football
  17. march — music
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. fork — in a road
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. fall — the season
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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