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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. branch — a division
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — an illness
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. cold — not warm
  9. face — to point toward
  10. stock — goods
  11. march — the month
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. march — the month
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. face — to confront
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. face — part of the head
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. march — music
  24. mouse — the animal

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