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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. game — wild animals
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. bass — the fish
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. branch — a division
  8. content — the amount
  9. drill — a practice
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. stock — shares
  12. drill — army training
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. stock — goods
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. content — happy
  20. drill — the tool
  21. game — a match
  22. bass — low music
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. stock — a soup base

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