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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bank — for money
  3. game — a match
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. stock — goods
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. present — there
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. stock — shares
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. march — the month
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bank — for money
  15. race — humankind
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. march — the month
  18. race — a contest
  19. present — a gift
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. game — wild animals
  22. march — music
  23. bank — of a river
  24. present — the time now

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