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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 116 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: stock · craft · field · hand · cap · fine · branch · wake

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. fine — all right
  3. cap — of ice
  4. stock — shares
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. field — for sport
  8. cap — a lid
  9. hand — help
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. field — a subject
  12. fine — high quality
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. craft — a skill
  15. craft — boats
  16. wake — a trail
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. branch — a division
  19. cap — a hat
  20. field — farmland
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. hand — in cards
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. stock — goods

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