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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. branch — a division
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. face — part of the head
  5. fall — to drop
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — from a university
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. fall — the season
  13. capital — money
  14. face — to point toward
  15. capital — a city
  16. stock — shares
  17. pop — to visit
  18. fall — to drop
  19. pop — music
  20. face — to confront
  21. rush — hurry
  22. pop — soda
  23. degree — an amount
  24. rush — to hurry

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