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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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Word bank
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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. march — the month
  4. kick — in football
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. stock — goods
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. saw — the tool
  11. tube — the underground
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. branch — a division
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. saw — the tool
  16. stock — shares
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. march — music
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. march — the month
  24. hide — animal skin

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