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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 120 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. branch — a division
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. fall — to drop
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. fall — the season
  7. fall — to drop
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bore — to tire
  10. stock — goods
  11. hand — help
  12. pop — to visit
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. scale — in music
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. stock — shares
  17. scale — size or range
  18. bore — to drill
  19. pop — soda
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. scale — for weighing

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