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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 116 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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. file — a line of people
  3. prune — to trim
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. file — a document
  6. pound — a weight
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. file — a tool
  10. stock — shares
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. march — the month
  15. mine — for digging
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. bore — to tire
  19. stock — goods
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bore — to drill

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