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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. cold — an illness
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. stock — shares
  5. cold — not warm
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. plane — a tool
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. bark — to shout
  13. stock — goods
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. branch — a division

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