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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. march — the month
  5. track — a song
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. march — music
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. stock — shares
  12. branch — a division
  13. rule — government
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. rule — a law
  16. track — to keep track
  17. face — to confront
  18. face — part of the head
  19. roll — a list
  20. march — the month
  21. face — to point toward
  22. stock — goods
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. track — a path

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