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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bark — to shout
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a music group
  10. last — to go on
  11. rush — hurry
  12. stock — goods
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. last — finally
  15. stock — shares
  16. last — final
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. wound — an injury

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