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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. march — music
  3. stock — goods
  4. band — a music group
  5. stock — shares
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bank — for money
  10. march — the month
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cap — of ice
  13. march — the month
  14. cap — a hat
  15. band — a ring
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. cap — a lid
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bank — for money
  20. cold — an illness
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. bear — the animal
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bear — to put up with

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