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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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. stock — shares
  3. spell — magic
  4. game — a match
  5. fine — high quality
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. stock — goods
  8. bank — for money
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fine — all right
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. spell — letters
  14. swing — to play on
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. branch — a division
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. bank — of a river
  19. spell — a short time
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. bank — for money
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — music
  24. branch — of a bank

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