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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 120 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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. bank — for money
  3. shower — rain
  4. can — to be able to
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. stock — shares
  8. pop — music
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bank — of a river
  11. stock — goods
  12. pop — soda
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. can — a tin
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bank — for money
  18. mate — to breed
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. shower — to wash
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mate — a friend
  24. pop — to visit

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