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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. march — the month
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wound — an injury
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. ground — the earth
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. rock — a stone
  11. rock — music
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. march — the month
  14. ground — crushed
  15. stock — goods
  16. fall — the season
  17. march — music
  18. stock — shares
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. bark — to shout
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. ground — a position
  24. stock — a soup base

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