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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. capital — money
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wind — moving air
  5. capital — a city
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — thin
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. branch — a division
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. roll — a list
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. stock — shares
  23. date — the fruit
  24. stock — goods

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