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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. rash — a series
  3. spring — of water
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. stock — shares
  6. stock — goods
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. shower — to wash
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. last — final
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. rash — hasty
  14. last — to go on
  15. plane — a tool
  16. last — finally
  17. spring — the season
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. spring — a coil
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. shower — rain
  22. craft — a skill
  23. branch — a division
  24. craft — boats

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