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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. band — a music group
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. stock — goods
  7. march — the month
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. track — to keep track
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. last — finally
  12. stock — shares
  13. last — final
  14. march — music
  15. track — a path
  16. branch — a division
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. last — to go on
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. band — a ring
  21. march — the month
  22. track — a song
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. kick — in football

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