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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. bank — of a river
  4. mate — a partner
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. branch — a division
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. content — happy
  11. stock — shares
  12. march — music
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. march — the month
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — for money
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mate — a friend
  20. march — the month
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. stock — goods
  24. content — the amount

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