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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. stock — goods
  6. pop — music
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. wake — a trail
  9. pop — soda
  10. field — farmland
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. branch — a division
  14. wound — an injury
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. rule — government
  17. stock — shares
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. pop — to visit
  20. field — for sport
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. field — a subject
  24. wound — an injury

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