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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. mine — for digging
  3. stock — goods
  4. march — music
  5. cap — a hat
  6. march — the month
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. staff — employees
  10. march — the month
  11. stock — shares
  12. pit — in a race
  13. cap — a lid
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — a division
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. staff — a stick
  19. staff — employees
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. cap — of ice
  22. foot — a measure
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. pit — a hole

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