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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. pop — soda
  3. march — the month
  4. row — to paddle
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. stock — goods
  7. pop — music
  8. track — to keep track
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. track — a song
  11. row — a line
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. pop — to visit
  15. march — the month
  16. bark — to shout
  17. march — music
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stem — to come from
  20. stock — shares
  21. track — a path
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. stem — of a plant

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