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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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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: bound · chest · stock · bowl · kick · firm · mark · temple

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stock — shares
  6. bound — certain
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. chest — of your body
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. mark — a trace
  11. kick — in football
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. chest — a box
  15. bound — obliged
  16. firm — decided
  17. firm — a company
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. stock — goods
  23. mark — a grade
  24. bound — tied together

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