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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. march — the month
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. fine — high quality
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. fine — all right
  9. branch — a division
  10. rush — hurry
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. march — the month
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. stock — shares
  16. ground — crushed
  17. ground — the earth
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. march — music
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — of the year

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