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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. staff — a stick
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. branch — a division
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. spell — a short time
  8. stock — shares
  9. stock — goods
  10. spell — letters
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wake — a trail
  14. mine — for digging
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. spell — magic
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. stand — to bear
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. staff — employees
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. staff — employees

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