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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. season — in sport
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. bark — to shout
  7. land — ground
  8. bound — obliged
  9. season — of the year
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. stock — shares
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — in music
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bound — certain
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. stock — goods
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. prune — to trim
  20. scale — size or range
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. land — to come down
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. bound — tied together

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