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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. march — the month
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cold — an illness
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. bound — obliged
  11. stock — goods
  12. bound — tied together
  13. branch — a division
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. dip — to sink
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. mark — a trace
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mark — a grade
  22. bound — certain
  23. stock — shares
  24. march — the month

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